✍️ Written by a UK Nurse Practitioner · 13+ years clinical experience

Health Results Explained

Plain-English guides to understanding your blood tests, imaging reports, and health numbers — written by a Nurse Practitioner, reviewed for clinical accuracy.

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About the Author

NMC Registered Nurse Practitioner · MSc Advanced Clinical Practice

All articles on HealthLens are written by the clinical team behind the platform — NHS-trained, NMC-registered Nurse Practitioners with over 13 years of frontline experience in primary care and acute medicine. Our goal is simple: translate medical jargon into language you can act on, without dumbing it down.

📚 All Articles

Understanding Your HbA1c: What It Means and Why It Matters

HbA1c is the gold standard test for diabetes and pre-diabetes. Learn what the numbers mean, why your GP uses it instead of a simple glucose test, and what to do if yours is raised.

8 min read Blood Sugar · Diabetes →

Reading Your Cholesterol Results: HDL, LDL, Triglycerides Explained

A cholesterol test gives you four numbers — and most people only look at the total. Here's what each one means, which ratio your doctor actually cares about, and when to worry.

9 min read Heart Health · Lipids →

Thyroid Function Tests Explained: TSH, T4, and T3

Thyroid results confuse people because TSH moves in the opposite direction to how you'd expect. This guide explains why — and what hypothyroidism, hyperthyroidism, and subclinical results mean for you.

10 min read Thyroid · Hormones →

Iron Deficiency and Anaemia: Understanding Ferritin, Haemoglobin, and More

Feeling exhausted, cold all the time, or short of breath? Iron deficiency is one of the most common and most missed conditions. Learn how the tests work and what the results actually mean.

9 min read Anaemia · Iron →

Kidney Function Tests Explained: eGFR, Creatinine, and Urea

Kidney disease is often silent until it's advanced. Your U&E blood test tells the story early — this guide explains what eGFR, creatinine, urea, and potassium readings mean in plain English.

9 min read Kidneys · U&E →

Liver Function Tests (LFTs) Explained: ALT, AST, Bilirubin, and More

LFTs are a panel of tests — not just one number. Each one tells a different part of the liver's story. Find out what raised ALT, low albumin, or high bilirubin actually indicate.

10 min read Liver · LFTs →

Full Blood Count Explained: Red Cells, White Cells, and Platelets

The FBC is the most frequently ordered blood test in the NHS. It measures dozens of parameters across your red cells, white cells, and platelets. Here's what each column means and when results flag a concern.

11 min read FBC · Haematology →

Understanding Your Blood Pressure Reading: What the Numbers Really Mean

120/80 — but what does that actually mean? And when does "a bit high" become hypertension that needs treatment? This guide covers the stages, the risks, and the lifestyle changes that genuinely work.

8 min read Blood Pressure · Hypertension →