Reclast prep - water, electrolytes, Tylenol ...?

@normahorn I have been wondering about the shortage of saline solutions and if they are still limiting IV saline to absolutely necessary uses. I am calling my infusion center today. I asked my doctor last week if I could delay my IV Recalst by a month but won't go longer than that.

My mistake. It is 60% that was made at the Baxter facility that was affected by the hurricane. And there was a shortage even before that event.

My son works in hospital management for a large hospital group. He has been telling me about this shortage and yes, even before the hurricane. Non-essential surgeries and procedures have been delayed at his facilities.

A related question - I had a message from my Dr's nurse today that I needed to redo my blood tests that the infusion center must have before my Reclast. I've reached out to my Dr's office 3 times over the past month regarding sending lab work and insurance info to the infusion center. The infusion center told me a week ago they did not have the lab work. I emailed it to them as a last resort. Then I got that message today. So now I have to jump thru hoops to get these 2 tests and get the results to the Dr, then to the infusion center, before Wednesday of this coming week! I see another delay coming, haha.
I will go stand in line at the one of the few Quest Labs open on a Sat tomorrow morning. Of course I have to fast. I plan to be there when they open and get on the list as a walk-in. Question - how long are lab results accepted after they are drawn? My blood was drawn near the end of Sept. I had my results in a few days. All looked normal. I can understand if this is the reason for the infusion center's request. But why the heck didn't my Dr's office send the results to the infusion much earlier. I would have done this asap. I'm not a happy camper here. I feel like the nurse dropped the ball and sent the results maybe yesterday. And now I have to try and get the results back to the infusion center before Wednesday. Grrrr. Sorry for the rambling post. 🙂

In my experience kidney function is the most important test before Reclast though docs tend to order calcium and Vitamin D (and the basic metabolic panel, which contains eGFR for kidney function). I always get results the same day, within hours.

What test do you have to fast for?

Comprehensive Metabolic Panel and Vit D hydroxy. When I looked up the test, it said to fast.
I usually get results back in a day, a few times it has been longer. The support staff at my Dr's office is a challenge to reach. I'm worried this will fall into the cracks and be delayed.

@255anny noone has ever told me to fast for a comprehensive metabolic panel or Vit D. I do skip calcium and Vit. D supplements for 24-36 hours.

I see this online (see below) but as I said, noone has ever asked me to fast and tests are often done right after an appointment in the middle of the day. Interesting and thanks for bringing this up.

"Do I need to fast for a comprehensive metabolic panel (CMP)?
Maybe. Sometimes, providers ask you to avoid eating or drinking (fast) for 10 to 12 hours before a CMP. It might be helpful to schedule your test first thing in the morning, so you can eat right afterward. Your healthcare provider will give you specific instructions when they order the test for you."

Ditto kidney and liver function tests and several others. I need to ask my doctors about redoing a few!

It seems the correct answer is all over the board! Who knows. But my Google searches turned up more in favor of fasting beforehand. Reminds me of an appt I had with my current Dr. We were discussing the CTX test and she said, well, lets do it right now. I was surprised and remarked that wasn't it important to have that blood draw early in the morning? She paused and said yes, you are right. I'm starting to realize that in todays medical environment we have to be diligent and make every effort to educate ourselves. It's overwhelming.