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Adherence to guideline-based laboratory testing and treatment of chlamydia and gonorrhea in pregnant women has been found to be suboptimal in the United States, indicating the potential for negative effects on newborn and maternal health, according to a recently published study in the Journal of Lower Genital Tract Disease. Researchers from Quest Diagnostics and the University of Alabama sought to evaluate adherence to national recommendations for chlamydia and gonorrhea testing during pregnancy. This evaluation also included tests for persistence/potential reinfection at time of delivery and cure/clearance.

A critical technique in clinical laboratory testing, mass spectrometry (MS) involves, at its core, examining a mass of molecules. Darren Weber, Associate Scientific Director in the R&D Mass Spectrometry department at Quest Diagnostics-Nichols Institute in San Juan Capistrano, explains mass spectrometry’s place in the clinical lab.

Two blood tests you probably haven’t heard of might predict your risk of heart disease better than standard tests do. The first measures a protein called apolipoprotein B, or apoB for short, that contributes to artery-blocking plaque. The other test, for lipoprotein(a), measures a type of bad cholesterol. A growing number of specialists and primary care doctors say these tests can help give you a more precise and earlier indication of possible heart problems than more common tests for things like LDL, the best-known bad cholesterol marker. Up to 20% of patients with normal LDL cholesterol levels will have high levels of apoB, says Dr. Marc Penn, a cardiologist and a medical director at laboratory testing company Quest Diagnostics.

Coming years could see a shift in clinical laboratory operations as developments in robotics and AI further streamline workflows and bring automation to new parts of the lab. In particular, labs and vendors are working to deploy "trackless" robotics and automation systems to supplement or replace traditional track-based total lab automation (TLA) systems, further reducing the human involvement required for lab workflows and in some laboratories eliminating it entirely. Quest is also moving toward a trackless automation strategy, said Aldana, noting that the company began seriously pursuing this approach this year using both equipment from outside vendors as well as systems developed internally. He said that while the effort is still in the early stages, the company aims to quickly roll out trackless automation tools across its labs.

Quest Diagnostics raised its 2024 profit and revenue forecasts on Tuesday, banking on robust demand for its health tests. Demand for diagnostic tests has grown in recent quarters as more people, especially older adults, caught up on surgeries deferred during the pandemic. "This performance is due to growth of new physician and hospital customers, more favorable test mix that includes greater adoption of advanced diagnostics," Quest CEO Jim Davis said.

Here’s what experts say your AMH level can and can’t tell you about your fertility. “An AMH test could be the first step. Anything that initiates discussions between you and your spouse or your significant other and your health care professional I think is incredibly valuable,” says Damian Alagia, MD, Senior Medical Director for Advanced Diagnostics and Women’s Health at Quest Diagnostics on behalf of questhealth.com.

OhioHealth, based in Columbus, signed an agreement to sell certain assets of its outreach laboratory services business to Quest Diagnostics. The parties expect the transaction to close in the third quarter of the year, pending regulatory approval. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

Quest Diagnostics said on Wednesday it would acquire Canada-based LifeLabs from pension plan owner OMERS for about C$1.35 billion, or about $985 million, including net debt. LifeLabs, which provides community laboratory tests, would retain its brand, Canadian headquarters and management after the acquisition is closed. The U.S. laboratory operator will acquire 100% of the equity of LifeLabs and expects to fund the acquisition through cash on hand and debt. Quest expects the deal to generate roughly $710 million in annual revenues.

Quest Diagnostics plans to acquire Allina Health's laboratory assets at most of its ambulatory clinic sites. The company and the Minneapolis-based health system have signed an definitive agreement and expect the transaction to close this fall, pending regulatory approvals. Financial terms were not disclosed.

If it feels like you’ve been hearing more about testosterone lately, you’re not wrong. However, the question of whether or not you should get your own testosterone checked isn’t so straightforward. To put it simply, if you’re not experiencing persistent symptoms associated with low testosterone, you have no reason to get your levels checked—regardless of what they might be. “If you're otherwise feeling well, I really don't advocate just going on a fishing expedition,” says Sanjay B. Dixit, MD, medical director of cardiometabolic endocrine and wellness clinical solutions at Quest Diagnostics. “That's actually one of the key points in the Endocrine Society’s guidelines from 2018, that they do not recommend testing in otherwise asymptomatic men.”