What laboratory tests are part of a Complete Metabolic Panel (CMP)?

From the Guidelines

A Complete Metabolic Panel (CMP) includes 14 laboratory tests that assess various aspects of metabolism and organ function, as outlined in the most recent study 1, which provides the highest quality evidence. These tests include:

• Glucose, which measures blood sugar levels
• Calcium, which evaluates bone health and nerve function
• Albumin and total protein, which assess nutritional status and liver function
• Sodium, potassium, chloride, and carbon dioxide (bicarbonate), which evaluate electrolyte balance and acid-base status
• Blood urea nitrogen (BUN) and creatinine, which measure kidney function
• Alkaline phosphatase (ALP), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and bilirubin, which assess liver function. The CMP provides a comprehensive overview of metabolic processes, kidney and liver function, and electrolyte balance, making it a valuable screening tool for various conditions including diabetes, kidney disease, liver disorders, and electrolyte imbalances, as supported by 1 and 1. It's typically performed after fasting for 8-12 hours to ensure accurate results, particularly for glucose measurements. The test requires a simple blood draw and results are usually available within 24 hours. While other studies, such as 1, provide information on laboratory tests, they are not as recent or directly relevant to the composition of a CMP as 1.

From the Research

Laboratory Tests in a Complete Metabolic Panel (CMP)

The following laboratory tests are typically part of a Complete Metabolic Panel (CMP):

• Glucose
• Electrolytes (sodium, potassium, chloride)
• Kidney function tests (creatinine, urea or blood urea nitrogen (BUN))
• Liver function tests (alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alkaline phosphatase, total bilirubin, total protein, and albumin) 2
• Calcium and total carbon dioxide (tCo2) or bicarbonate 3, 4

Specific Tests and Their Significance

Some studies have evaluated the clinical utility of specific tests within the CMP, including:

• Total calcium, which may be unnecessary in some cases 3
• Liver function tests, which can help identify patients with liver disease or other conditions 2
• Kidney function tests, which can help identify patients with kidney disease or other conditions 4
• Electrolytes, which can help identify patients with electrolyte imbalances 5, 4

Analytical Performance of CMP Analytes

The analytical performance of CMP analytes has been evaluated in various studies, including:

• A study that found high precision and good correlation for most CMP analytes on the Abaxis Piccolo Xpress Point of Care analyzer 5
• A study that compared the results of CMP analytes on two point-of-care systems and a mainframe chemistry analyzer, finding strong correlations between the systems 4