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Advanced Diagnostic Testing in Atlanta

Progressive Medical Center is a leading provider of Advanced Diagnostic Testing in Atlanta, GA. Advanced diagnostic testing stands at the forefront of healthcare, providing critical insights that drive accurate diagnoses and effective treatment plans.

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Advanced Diagnostics are a game-changer in the ability to uncover root causes of medical conditions.

Much of modern medicine is focused on putting a label on something or giving it a name and diagnosis. At Progressive Medical Center, we work to do more than that. We recognize that a lack of health is more than just a diagnosis.

Those who focus only on finding the diagnosis often overlook the root cause that led to the person’s condition in the first place. With any medical condition, there is an end result—also called a diagnosis—but there is also a disease process that caused the condition to occur. That process or root cause will cause the condition to continue unless it is recognized and addressed. Just as a seed needs soil to grow, pathology will only thrive in the right environment. By changing the environment, the pathology will remit.

Looking at underlying processes is often called a “systems-based approach” because it recognizes the many interconnected systems in the body, and treatments are designed with consideration of this complexity. However, the processes may be silent until the pathology arrives, so by measuring parameters involved in the process we can uncover the roots of illness and prevent illness in the first place. That is why diagnostic testing is important.

Regardless of the condition, there are a handful of underlying processes that will fan the fire of pathology:

Stress

Most issues will be exacerbated and even caused by stress in one’s life. By managing stress appropriately we make the system more impervious to almost all we come in contact with. This is how we defend our bodies from the outside world.

Inflammation

Inflammation drives heart disease, neurologic conditions, and even cancer. If we can control inflammation we can control one of the major triggers that cause genetics to turn against us.

Oxidation

Much like inflammation, oxidation or reactive oxygen species, a type of free radical, damage our mitochondria as well as other parts of the body. The mitochondria are the powerhouses of the cell. This is where all of our energy is made. If energy production is compromised, all healing is compromised. If energy production is compromised, we feel fatigued, worn down, and all our normal systems in the body are weakened.

Nutritional Deficiencies

Nutrients drive thousands of metabolic reactions every minute in our body. Like a car, if we are nutritionally deficient, our engine cannot run as it should. A person who is nutritionally-replete is a well-oiled machine. Pathology has less of a chance to grow when nutritional status is high.

Toxicity

Toxins such as chemicals and metals are like a wrench in the workings of our body. The cleaner the system, the better able we are to achieve wellness. By removing chemicals and metals we will decrease damage to the mitochondria and decrease inflammation and oxidation that cause pathology in the first place. Toxicity is the key thing that damages our DNA and potentiates possible cancers.

In order to unravel the processes behind certain conditions we must order advanced diagnostics that address these key areas:

Hormone Balance, Toxicity, Nutrition, Inflammation and Oxidation, Neurotransmitters, The Gastrointestinal Tract and Immune System

To keep it simple for our patients, our tests are designed to be easy & non-invasive.

The Advanced Diagnostics We Run: The Gut as Our Window to Health

Food Sensitivity

This food sensitivity test is different than a conventional allergy test. It is also much more advanced than other clinics or online services provide.

Why is this important? Allergies create immediate reactions such as swelling or stuffy nose. Food sensitivities, on the other hand, create ongoing inflammation that drives chronic symptoms such as fatigue, brain fog, and pain. However, we do not always feel all types of inflammation. Inflammation can be a silent player, as it is in heart disease, and will eventually cause different pathologies and conditions.
By reducing inflammation with dietary changes, we decrease weight gain and fatigue but also reduce the chances of getting many diseases and even decrease our rate of aging. To learn more in-depth about our signature Progressive Food Sensitivity Testing, click here

“Leaky Gut” (Zonulin/DAO)

These are markers that allow us to measure leaky gut and allergic inflammation. Using this test, we can see how much improvement we have made in terms of calming down inflammation driven by histamine and food sensitivities. When these markers are abnormal, we are at more risk for diabetes, celiac disease, neurological disorders, cancers, and anything driven by inflammation.

GI Microbiota

The GI tract is the part of the body that houses 85% of our immune system and 95% of our neurotransmitters. Good gut health is critical to maintaining wellness and preventing diseases such as autoimmune conditions, cancers, fatigue, and much more.

By examining the wealth of information in these test results, we can reduce one of the major areas of inflammation. In the gut, the body decides whether it is tolerant of something or inflamed by something. By looking at a stool test, we make sure that you are optimally absorbing nutrients and reducing the inflammatory load. The human GI tract of 30,000 different beneficial flora should be able to operate optimally, in conjunction with our own system.

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Hormones: The Complex Interactions That Drive Our Machine

Adrenal Stress Testing

Stress drives every condition in our body. By starting with balancing adrenal function you balance the hormone cortisol, but you also improve reproductive hormones such as estrogen and testosterone. Reducing your stress makes you function optimally. Reducing stress is one of the key ways we will live longer and healthier.

Thyroid Hormone Testing

A complete thyroid profile will uncover underlying issues of fatigue, brain fog, weight gain, and pain. Improper thyroid function means we are metabolically worn down and can’t drive the thousands of metabolic reactions that take place every second in our body. Proper thyroid function makes us feel better and reduces our incidence of cancer.

Hormone workup

A hormone workup is more than a test of estrogen levels or testosterone levels. A hormone workup includes how our adrenals and thyroid are functioning because these are intimately related to the entire web of sex hormones. A comprehensive analysis of all hormones can help identify the need for bio-identical hormone replacement and can tell a clinician to avoid that treatment when it isn’t necessary for that individual.

A good hormone work-up will also include oxidative stress or free radical measurements because free radicals damage hormones and make them more dangerous in our bodies. Hormones are preferentially looked at in the saliva but can sometimes be looked at in the serum as well, depending on the person and the condition.

Toxicity

Heavy Metal Testing

Heavy metals are everywhere in our environment. From the lead in the exhaust that one breathes to the mercury in fish that we eat—we all have the potential for contamination. Heavy metals can cause neurological diseases and cardiovascular disease. By removing metals from the body, we improve the ability of the mitochondria to function, which means more energy and increased longevity.

Oxidative Stress Testing

Oxidative stress markers tell us about free radicals in our body. Free radicals can be thought of as the byproducts of a fire. Free radicals cause cancer, heart disease, contribute to neurologic conditions, and even weight gain. Free radicals damage the mitochondria, which drive how long we live. Reducing free radicals is necessary to improve the quality of life and prevent pathology from occurring.

Nutritional work-up

This profile is ordered when we are looking for an overview of nutrient levels in the system. Low levels of Vitamin C can exacerbate stress and cause poor wound healing. Low levels of Vitamins A and D can compromise immune function and make patients more susceptible to viral infections and other chronic diseases. High nutritional levels are necessary for optimal function.

Amino Acids

Amino acids drive neurotransmitters, muscle development, immune function, and mitochondrial production of energy. By measuring these levels we can nutritionally optimize to improve health from gut lining, brain chemistry, and much more.

Fatty Acids

The right balance of fats is critical for our brain, our nerves, and the membrane of every single cell in our body. If fats are out of balance we are at more risk for heart disease, neurologic conditions, numbness and tingling, and even depression. An imbalance of fats can promote inflammation and pain as well as contribute to infertility.

Fat-soluble nutrients

This profile looks at nutrients like A, E, D, and K. These nutrients are known for being anti-cancer nutrients, helping our brain, and helping immune function. Optimal levels are necessary for every single process in the body.

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Optimizing Systems in the Body

Immune Function Profile

While it may not be possible to measure every infection out there, we can measure how our immune system is reacting to the environment. By looking at critical interleukins, which are signals sent by our immune system, we can discover causes of fatigue, weight gain, arthritis, and many autoimmune conditions. Not only can we detect them, but these conditions, which may seem like something one is doomed to suffer with, can be reversed and moved to permanent remission.

Cardio/Metabolic Profile

Cardiovascular disease is our number one killer today. Part of the problem is that routine biomarkers such as cholesterol are not very predictive. By measuring parameters such as oxidized LDL (which is ten times more predictive of cardiovascular disease than LDL alone), we can catch the process before the disease takes hold.

This will also measure adiponectin and leptin which tell the body to burn and store fat. These markers are early warning signs of diabetes and metabolic syndrome. Glycomark is also measured which tells us how the body handles sugar. This will also prevent diabetes and even dementia as the brain is very fragile in the presence of uncontrolled sugar.

Neurotransmitter Profile

Neurotransmitters are important for cognitive function, depression, anxiety, insomnia, or fatigue. Antidepressants often target neurotransmitter pathways but the body can synthesize these neurotransmitters naturally if it has all the amino acids, vitamins, and minerals necessary to do so.

By measuring your neurotransmitter levels you know exactly where to intervene and you speed up the process of achieving wellness. When testing for neurotransmitters you may also consider looking at markers for oxidative stress. If there is high oxidative stress or free radical production then neurotransmitters will be blocked from working correctly in your body.

Progressive Advanced Diagnostic Testing in Atlanta, GA: The Leading Systems-Based Approach to Wellness

Advanced diagnostic testing is revolutionizing the way we approach healthcare, offering precision and clarity that allow us to create a comprehensive treatment plan for each of our patients.

At Progressive Medical Center, we go beyond basic diagnostic imaging and testing like MRI scans and CT scans. We utilize genetic testing, environmental toxin exposure tests, microbiome testing, metabolic function testing, and more to find the root cause of your symptoms. These technologies provide detailed and vital information that allows us to create effective treatment plans, ultimately leading to better outcomes.