A bone profile report is short: four rows, four numbers. If one of them sits a little away from the others, that is what the test is built to show, because a doctor reads the four side by side.
A bone profile is a blood test that measures calcium, phosphate, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and albumin. Together they show how your body is handling the minerals and proteins that bone depends on. The quickest way to have it is to book the four single tests at one visit, each linked below, for £154.39 plus one £50 blood draw. You can walk in at 117a Harley Street seven days a week, and the result is ready one day after the sample reaches the laboratory. The Bone Screen at £73.75 is a different test: it has no blood phosphate and asks for a 24-hour urine collection instead.
"A bone profile is four numbers: calcium, phosphate, ALP and albumin. One of them being slightly off is common. I'm looking at how they sit together."
Dr Mohammad Bakhtiar, Clinical Lead, GMC 4694470
Who usually has a bone profile
Doctors tend to ask for these numbers when someone has symptoms that can go with a raised calcium, such as thirst, passing more urine, tiredness or constipation. They also ask for them when a person has a kidney or parathyroid question, or takes a supplement or medicine that affects calcium, including vitamin D (Patient.info). The NHS notes that many people first learn of a parathyroid problem when blood is taken for something else.
A bone profile is not the main test for osteoporosis. The NHS describes a bone density (DEXA) scan for that, usually after a doctor has assessed your fracture risk.
Calcium: the mineral bone is built from
Almost all the calcium in your body is stored in bone. A small amount circulates in the blood, where nerves and muscles use it, and the body keeps that level in a narrow band through the parathyroid glands, vitamin D and the kidneys. The calcium test shows the circulating amount. It does not count what is stored in the skeleton.
That is why calcium is the number a doctor reads first and trusts last on its own. A figure that is a little high or low prompts questions about the other three rows, your medicines, your vitamin D and how your kidneys are working, before anyone draws a conclusion.
Albumin: the protein that carries calcium
Much of the calcium in blood travels attached to albumin. If albumin is low, the measured calcium can look low even when the active part is fine, and the reverse can happen too. The albumin test lets the doctor allow for that, which is why these two rows are always read as a pair. Albumin also reflects general health, including the liver and kidneys, so it adds context to the whole report.
Phosphate: calcium's partner
Phosphate binds with calcium to form bone mineral, and the kidneys and the same hormones control both. A phosphate test shows whether the pair look balanced.
ALP: an enzyme made where bone is renewed
Bone-building cells release ALP into the blood, and the liver makes it too, so the alkaline phosphatase test also appears on liver panels. Our guide to liver function results shows how that side reads.
How the four are read together
Think of two pairs. Calcium and phosphate describe the minerals. ALP and albumin describe the activity and the protein that carries them.
| Compare | What the doctor is checking |
|---|---|
| Calcium with albumin | Whether the calcium figure needs adjusting for the carrier protein |
| Calcium with phosphate | Whether the two minerals look balanced |
| ALP with liver results | Whether the ALP is coming from bone, liver or both |
| All four with your history | Age, medicines, diet, sunlight and any known condition |
What happens if one result sits outside the range
Each row on your report is printed next to the range that laboratory uses, and that printed range is the one to compare your number with. Ranges differ slightly between laboratories, so a figure from another report is not a fair comparison.
A single result just outside the range is often the start of a conversation. A common next step is a repeat sample, because the first reading can be affected by something as simple as how long the tourniquet was left on. A doctor may also look at albumin and ALP, since they help explain a calcium figure.
If calcium stays outside the range, further blood tests are usually added. Vitamin D and parathyroid hormone are the two doctors most often look at next, because both influence how much calcium is in the blood. A doctor may then suggest a specialist opinion for the cause. Bring your report to a doctor review (see below) and they can talk you through which of these apply to you.
Sources: Patient.info, hypercalcaemia; Patient.info, hypocalcaemia; NHS, hyperparathyroidism; NHS, osteoporosis.
What it costs
The four single tests come to £154.39 if bought separately: calcium £39.38, phosphate £36.25, ALP £39.38 and albumin £39.38. Taken at one visit you pay one £50 blood draw, so the total is £204.39.
The Bone Screen is priced at £73.75 plus the draw and covers blood ALP, albumin, total protein, globulin and calcium, plus the 24-hour urine collection for calcium and phosphate. If you want phosphate measured in the blood along with vitamin D, kidney and liver function, the Bone Screen (bloods only) is £168.75 plus the draw.
You can also add a doctor review for £75, in which a GMC-registered doctor explains the results to you.
What happens at the visit
Come to 117a Harley Street, Suite E, any day: Monday to Friday 09:00 to 18:00, Saturday and Sunday 10:00 to 14:00. A phlebotomist takes a blood sample from your arm. The Bone Screen page says most people do not need to fast for the blood part of that profile.
The sample reaches the laboratory the same day. The report is sent directly to you.
Questions people ask
Is a bone profile the same as a bone density scan?
No. A bone profile is a blood test of chemistry. A DEXA scan is an X-ray that measures bone density. They answer different questions, and some people have both.
Does a bone profile include vitamin D?
No. Calcium, phosphate, ALP and albumin are the four, and the Bone Screen does not include vitamin D either. You can add it: the calcium and vitamin D test is £138.75 plus the draw. Vitamin D helps the gut absorb calcium, so doctors often look at it next to the other four.
Get your bone profile checked
Walk in any day at 117a Harley Street, or book online. Choose the four single tests, or the Bone Screen if the urine collection suits you, and see all of our private blood tests in London.