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.

Pancreatic elastase is the digestive enzyme the pancreas produces to help digest food. Doctors can measure elastase levels by testing a stool sample. Low levels could indicate exocrine pancreatic ...