Library · Test
Comprehensive metabolic panel
Make it clearer
A comprehensive metabolic panel, often called a CMP, is a routine blood test. It measures 14 different substances in your blood sample, and together they give information about your metabolism, which is how your body uses food and energy. Think of a car's dashboard: one glance shows you several gauges at once, and each one tracks something different.
Several of these substances are linked to the kidneys. Creatinine and blood urea nitrogen, or BUN, are waste products, leftovers the body no longer needs. The kidneys pull them out of the blood, like a strainer that holds back what isn't wanted, and get rid of them in urine. Others are linked to the liver. Albumin, the main protein in the blood, and the enzymes ALT, AST, and alkaline phosphatase are made mostly there. An enzyme is a protein that speeds up certain chemical reactions in the body.
The panel also measures glucose, which is the sugar in your blood, and calcium. And it measures electrolytes: sodium, potassium, chloride, and bicarbonate. These are minerals that carry an electrical charge, and they help control how much fluid is in your body and keep acids and bases in balance.
In brief
A comprehensive metabolic panel (CMP) is a routine blood test that measures 14 substances and gives information about metabolism: how the body uses food and energy.
Creatinine and blood urea nitrogen (BUN) are waste products that the kidneys filter out and remove in urine; albumin and the enzymes ALT, AST, and alkaline phosphatase come mostly from the liver.
It also measures glucose, calcium, and electrolytes (sodium, potassium, chloride, bicarbonate), electrically charged minerals that help control the body's fluid levels and acid-base balance.
Sources (1)
- MedlinePlus, National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of HealthComprehensive Metabolic Panel (CMP): MedlinePlus Medical TestPublished
This page explains the topic in general terms; it does not tell anyone what treatment to follow.
Updated