Although they’re a normal part of childhood and adolescence, you may find it tempting to skip annual physicals once you reach young adulthood or move beyond that to your senior years. However, annual physical exams offer benefits throughout your life. That’s especially true when you settle into adulthood.
Dr. Kadie E. Leach is an internist who serves the metropolitan area of Washington, DC, with outstanding primary medical care from her office in Lanham, Maryland. Dr. Leach is passionate about preventive health care, a significant focus of routine physical examinations.
Here is Dr. Leach’s guidance regarding the importance of annual physicals at every stage of life.
An annual physical is longer and covers much more territory than appointments you make when you’re feeling ill.
For instance, Dr. Leach spends significant face-to-face time discussing and reviewing your medical history and how you’re feeling overall, including your physical as well as social and emotional health. She also evaluates your immunization history and provides guidance regarding vaccines or boosters you may need.
During the exam, Dr. Leach checks your blood pressure, reflexes, and temperature, and listens to your heart and lungs. You can also expect a head-to-toe assessment that typically includes a skin exam, breast and pelvic exam for women, and may include a prostate check for men.
Dr. Leach also uses this opportunity to discuss and prescribe screening lab work based on your age and overall health status.
Regardless of your age, annual physical exams offer Dr. Leach a comprehensive view of your health status that help inform her decisions regarding preventive health care.
The longer visits also offer a chance to develop a professional rapport and long-term relationship with your primary care physician. This factor can ease anxiety or stress during future illness, and the updated health information may be invaluable during a medical emergency.
However, the most important benefit of annual exams is the opportunity to discover potentially serious conditions such as elevated blood pressure, a breast lump, or suspicious skin lesions early, when treatments are most effective.
Dr. Leach recommends screening blood work based on your age and overall health status. These lab tests provide details regarding your cholesterol levels, kidney function, and additional health information Dr. Leach uses to plan your preventive strategy.
For instance, when high blood sugar levels are caught early, you can take steps to prevent this symptoms of prediabetes from progressing to diabetes. Correcting your cholesterol levels can help prevent heart disease. Declines in kidney function or other abnormal lab results could signal the need to change your blood pressure medications.
For outstanding primary care that’s always patient-focused, schedule an evaluation with Dr. Leach today by calling her Maryland office or requesting an appointment online.
