Stool samples can help doctors diagnose some health conditions. Tips for collecting a stool sample include urinating before collecting the sample and using any tools that the sample kit provides.

If you are having digestive symptoms, your doctor may prescribe an at-home stool test, in which you collect stool samples and send them to a lab or bring them to your doctor’s office for analysis.

Healthcare professionals consider a healthy pancreatic elastase level above 200 micrograms per gram (mcg/g). Pancreatic elastase is the digestive enzyme that the pancreas produces to help digest food.