Components of Yearly Health Exams: The Different Health Indicators

Introduction

Our health being a source of wealth is a saying we always hear when talking about medical-related conversations. Your health is your top priority to enjoy your life to its fullest. Illness and diseases are things that can limit what you want to do, or worse, can be the cause of your demise.

Taking care of yourself should be done with no questions asked. People are limited to having their body and health conditions checked due to the shortage of healthcare workers in rural areas.

Whenever you have a chance to be examined, you should be grateful for the opportunity given to you. There are many health maintenance organizations or, in short, HMOs that you can avail yourself of to save money as you take care of your body.

Having your annual examination is essential to know if you should change the type of your lifestyle. There are many components of your yearly health exams, which we will discuss below.

1. Medical History

Physicians will ask about your medical background. They need to know if you have any operations done in the past or comorbidity that should be the focus. Doctors will also ask if you have any allergies to foods and medicines, which will be vital to avoid prescribing such medication. It would be best to tell your physicians about the things that are bothering you physically, and it must be a sign or symptom of a disease that you didn’t know you had. After consulting about the problems and physicians knowing your medical background, the next step is to have your routine laboratories.

2. Vital signs

These are the basic information that nurses will have to check as soon as patients enter a clinic. They check for blood pressure, pulse rate, respiratory rate, and temperature. However, the primary vital signs can vary depending on your concern. Nonetheless, this information will give the physician a rough estimate of your health.

3. Laboratories

The laboratory test that you need to request will depend on your health requirements. Physicians will list what is necessary for your age bracket and existing condition. There are specific reasons why one patient’s laboratory will be completely different from another. Specialized tests like markers for cancers or tumor markers are those for the elderly and with symptoms. Prostate-specific antigens and pap smears are gender-based. So, talking to your physician about what is needed for you is the right thing.

4. Imaging

The next one is an examination that will let physicians know what it looks like inside your body. They can do it by using equipment known as radiographs and ultrasounds. It will help to diagnose and see if something is going wrong in your body. These things are not to be interpreted alone as the source of a medical background, and you should consider medical history when discussing a particular disease.

5. Physical examination

After all the ancillaries have been taken, and the results are out, the next thing to do is go back to your physician and let them interpret the results together with your physical examination. Physical examinations comprise inspecting, palpating, auscultating, and percussing certain body parts. The doctors, in general, will take a look at all your body parts and determine whether there is something notable. They will then prescribe some medicines for you and give you some advice to go about your health. Some need follow-ups after a month for a more focused observation.

6. Dental Checkup

The majority of the people having annual exams are always forgetting to have their teeth checked. One of the most common pain that people have is a toothache. Toothaches have many causes, and they can vary from inflammations due to infections, foreign bodies, wounds, or decaying teeth. However, for severe dental pain, you might be experiencing severe dental disease. Going to a nearby emergency dentist’s office for tooth extraction is needed to alleviate the pain. Making it a habit to visit your dental care provider regularly will help prevent such mishaps.

Conclusion

As we continue to face a pandemic crisis, many people are getting concerned about their health. It is a way of nature to let the people with strong immunity survive compared to others with comorbidity.

Patients with compromised health should ask for help from physicians to do what they need to do to strengthen their bodies. It is a big realization that our health should be our number one priority.

Preventing such cases should be a breeze if you are allowing your body to undergo necessary tests regularly. Do not let your body get used to unhealthy habits, such as eating junk foods and not exercising.