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I'm watching the Today show right now, and a doctor is discussing how they do more harm than good. She believes that a yearly physical is unnecessary. What do you think?
What do you guys think about the yearly physical?
- Thread starter arresteddev
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It's unnecessary except for the times you actually find something pathological. Then it just might be worth it.
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I more and more see the value of preventative medicine, and I am a specialist! Physicals are great, vaccines are great. Healthy lifestyle even better! These yearly visits are much cheaper than diagnosing a chronic illness too late....
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I recently had an undergrad prof tell me the same thing, that they're ultimately not very useful, specifically in younger patients (18-25) without any sort of medical history. Sounds like a growing trend in academia...?
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The today show. (trying not to judge 😉 )
The first I read of the article was on nytimes http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/03/sunday-review/lets-not-get-physicals.html?pagewanted=all
There was a perspective article on NEJM that I cant find but try searching for it had legitimate references.
The first I read of the article was on nytimes http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/03/sunday-review/lets-not-get-physicals.html?pagewanted=all
There was a perspective article on NEJM that I cant find but try searching for it had legitimate references.
I do. I feel that I pay fur insurance months, I'm going in. Why suffer necessarily. I know people who wait forever with a sinus and ear infection. Now I know that the majority are viral, however rx nasal spray has show to help. I go because had my mom not gone yearly they wouldn't have caught her cancer. It's the time to check in and intercept potential issues early. Maybe a year is too often, but I'm cool with it
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I get yearly physicals just like a get yearly tune-ups for my vehicle. I say, if you want your machine to run smoothly, take decent care of it before a problem arises. My physicals usually include getting a bill of health from the PCP, seeing the ob/gyn, getting a blood and STD test, checking vitals, and making sure everything is in working order. This is how I was diagnosed with a vitamin D deficiency a long time ago so I truly believe in regular check-ups.
This has been in the news a great deal. I wonder if the mass hysteria has any truth.
What amount is considered "low Vitamin D levels?" Would you be up for trying a placebo?
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I don't see where the "harm" is in physicals if this doctor claims they are doing more harm than good. They aren't expensive.
K
kpcrew
haha apparently i have low vitamin d too
i'm glad i was informed of this before my bones started becoming brittle and breaking willy nilly
i'm glad i was informed of this before my bones started becoming brittle and breaking willy nilly
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It's important to get a physical but more important to get full-batter blood work done. This includes hormones.
I heard a story about a guy who was loving life and then he lost interest in just about anything and ended up parked on the couch regardless of being in good health. Not the typical American couch potato syndrome. He eventually had his testosterone levels tested and they were critically low (in the 20's I think) and he had to go onto HRT to address it.
Here's the big point though....the guy was only 33!!!
You can listen to the story here or you can look up the Superhuman Radio podcast on iTunes and download Episode #966.
Anyway...I thought it made the point that things when you'd wouldn't think needed to be checked when someone is young really should be monitored.
I heard a story about a guy who was loving life and then he lost interest in just about anything and ended up parked on the couch regardless of being in good health. Not the typical American couch potato syndrome. He eventually had his testosterone levels tested and they were critically low (in the 20's I think) and he had to go onto HRT to address it.
Here's the big point though....the guy was only 33!!!
You can listen to the story here or you can look up the Superhuman Radio podcast on iTunes and download Episode #966.
Anyway...I thought it made the point that things when you'd wouldn't think needed to be checked when someone is young really should be monitored.
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A full blown annual physical is unnecessary for most people in their teens and 20s unless you have an existing condition or are at high risk based on family history, but it is a good idea to get blood work done every year. Cholestereol, triglycerides, glucose, mineral levels, etc.
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I'm personally all for the yearly physical. Not much has changed in my own health each year, but I have seen it make a world of difference in my older relatives (older as in even just ten years older than me). My grandmother and grandfather never went to their yearly physicals and always put off seeing the doctor. They never thought that anything was wrong with them, so why spend the money? They both ended up with late stages of cancer. I have a cousin who caught his skin cancer in the early stages because of his yearly check-ups with all of his doctors, and he was just in his late 20s.
I can definitely see why there would be a trend against them, though. Each year I go and wait some ridiculous amount of time to see my doctor, all for her to tell me that I'm healthy.
I can definitely see why there would be a trend against them, though. Each year I go and wait some ridiculous amount of time to see my doctor, all for her to tell me that I'm healthy.
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I think they are necessary. The average American has no idea what values are associated with high blood pressure or high cholesterol. Yearly screenings can be used as a wake up call to educate people that they are headed down a bad road....what they choose to do with the information that are given as a result of a routine physical, however; still rests with them
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I agree with everyone that has supported the yearly physical.
Preventative care is becoming more and more important in the age of rising healthcare costs. Even though it seems backwards to pay the copay frequently, spending the money for the yearly physical can save vast amounts of money long term by preventing or detecting a malady early.
Preventative care is becoming more and more important in the age of rising healthcare costs. Even though it seems backwards to pay the copay frequently, spending the money for the yearly physical can save vast amounts of money long term by preventing or detecting a malady early.
I manage a family practice and one of our biggest goals is getting our patients to come in for their annual physical because all of our physicians believe it is very important for the health of the patient.
We do a blood pressure check, full blood work up, urinalysis, review of systems, and then any vaccinations. It's definitely the blood work that's the most important - it lets us catch some of the biggies - htn, hld, dm2 - early so we can get them treated and under control before they do any major damage.
We do a blood pressure check, full blood work up, urinalysis, review of systems, and then any vaccinations. It's definitely the blood work that's the most important - it lets us catch some of the biggies - htn, hld, dm2 - early so we can get them treated and under control before they do any major damage.
