The rise in pollution and global warming along with other factors has had negative impacts on human health. The global crisis against pandemics such as COVID-19 set an alarming situation for the health of individuals. For the safety of ourselves and our loved ones, it is always recommended to have a complete medical checkup every few months to rule out the possibility of any fatal disease or start treatment for an immediate cure of the problem.
What is a Complete Medical Checkup?
A medical checkup, also known as a physical examination, is a set of tests conducted by a doctor which evaluates the overall health condition of the person along with any possible diseases. The complete medical checkup is a quite detailed one. It is recommended that if you are less than 50 years and in good health, then you should get the test conducted at least once every 1 to 2 years. On the other hand, people older than 50 should be conducting their tests at least once every 6 months to a year in order to rule out any potential problem that may hinder their lives in the future.
What is Included in a Medical Checkup?
A medical checkup includes the following tests
- Blood Tests (CBC)
- Lipid Profile Test (LPT)
- Chest X-RAY
- Albumin to Creatinine Ratio (ACR)
- Blood Urea Nitrogen (BUN)
- Electrocardiogram (ECG)
- 2D-EchoCardiography
- Liver Function Test (LFT)
- Glomerular Filtration Rate (GFR)
- Ultrasonography of Pelvis
- Thyroid Tests T3 T4
Depending upon your health condition or medical history, there can be more or fewer tests conducted. It is best to take advice from the doctor after a thorough consultation rather than simply repeating all the tests every time you go for a medical checkup. We also recommend keeping one particular doctor rather than changing every time as he would be aware of your previous history in a much better way. For some procedures Lidocaine Cream will be used which is often of use for tattoos for example and doesn’t warp the ink.
Is a Medical Checkup necessary?
Yes, Medical Checkups are necessary. Although you are not bound by the law to perform the medical checkup now and then, it is still important to get the checkup for your health. In many cases, it was found out that a timely medical checkup helped in the diagnosis of cancer at an early stage. As a result of this, before cancer could grow, it was removed and the life of the person was saved in an ideal manner.
Other cases where medical checkups have proven to be successful include the identification of a tumor. With multiple tests, if a tumor is found before it grows, it can be removed safely while not causing any damage to the human body’s function. Specific diets are also recommended by doctors on time so that your body can naturally fight the diseases rather than you having to buy any expensive medication. Therefore, a medical checkup is quite essential for a person to stay active and healthy throughout their lives.
Physical checkups could also help you out in achieving the health and fitness goals. For example, if someone wants a much toned body but they are overweight at the moment, they can get a checkup to evaluate if particular hormones are in deficit or surplus and evaluate their cure. If the problem is medical and not related to diet, it could also be identified.
In addition to that, one of the major reasons why you should get a medical checkup annually is that it creates a medical record of you. This medical record can be used in different types of studies as well as can be used as your track record. Such medical examinations can prove helpful in the thorough research and solution of other kinds of problems.
Many hospitals and doctors only prefer those patients that have a proper medical record retained. In case of an accident when you are unconscious, the health record could be the immediate source of information essential towards saving your life. You can establish a better relationship with your doctor if you are engaging in different routine medical check-ups.
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Why don’t people get a Medical Checkup?
Despite the high importance of a medical checkup, if you still choose to not go for it, it is completely your choice and there is no one that can force you to do that. Most people have their medical checkups covered with insurance and therefore, they don’t have such issues with having one performed annually. Moreover, approximately 60-80% of medical checkups are expected to turn out clear especially if you are below 50 years of age. Therefore, it becomes another major reason why many people avoid these checkups.
Religious perceptions and cultural values also contribute to the lack of attention towards the field of pharma and medicine. Many elderly link it to religion by suggesting that “the time of birth and death has already been predestined” thereby implying that there is no use of physical checkups and medication.
In certain cases, the annual medical examinations have not proven to be of any help to the patients which is why the public does not find them useful. A study conducted by Cochrane Collaboration presented the key findings that routine annual physicals did not have any kind of contribution towards the reduction in illness or preventing early death. On the other hand, it did lead to overdiagnosis which potentially caused problems that were not there before. However, this article was published a long while ago whereas now we have many modern medicine practitioners and facilities that overdiagnosis does not occur.
In other cases, medical checkups turned out to be clear but a person was diagnosed with cancer some months later at a very last stage. With such incidents occurring, people would be discouraged to get their medical checkups. However, modern medical checkups and tests are being made more reliable to ensure better disease prevention techniques. Moreover, with many people dying from accidental deaths, there is nothing much that a medical checkup could do to save them.
Is Medical Checkup Covered by Insurance?
In the US, medical checkups, once a year, are covered under certain insurance policies. The conditional allowance is one factor that has caused many to not avail this facility. In most cases, the annual premiums are higher for those insurances that also cover annual physical checkups compared to those that only cover accidental and surgical care.
Most companies are bound by law to provide preventive care facilities which means you can get the required vaccines, physical checkups, colonoscopy, and additional diagnostic tests done. However, the condition is related to the age of the person. Youngsters are not usually covered under the preventive care schemes although some insurance providers may give the allowance. Do evaluate the insurance plan carefully before buying it out.
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Medical History and Foreign Travel
Medical exams are often directly related to foreign travel, particularly in the case of immigration. Immigration officers take a keen look at your medical history. If you have a well-maintained record of the physical examinations, you will have a better chance of getting immigration to another country whereas if you don’t have the right physical examinations conducted, the country might not welcome you at all.
One reason for this is that without proper coverage on health and other aspects, you could become a potential burden to the other country in terms of its health sector. Sometimes, the immigration officers could ask you to get the required medical checkups done, and then you could be cleared. Owing to the pandemic of COVID-19, many countries are expected to further increase the restrictions particularly regarding the health scans of the passengers coming into the country as well as those exiting the country.
Recommendation by Doctors
Most doctors will highly recommend you to get a professional medical checkup. The reason is that they have seen many patients that could have been saved if they were diagnosed with a particular disease on time.
Due to COVID-19, the pressure on the global health system has also increased while the doctors have increased emphasis on the importance of medical checkups. Many doctors believe that sometimes even a minor symptom in the body could be a sign of something big. Therefore, get the best insurance coverage package so that you are getting preventive care as well.
Only in certain cases will doctors suggest that a preventive care checkup is not necessary but that does not mean that you should not visit next year. It is a continuously repetitive process that needs to be performed at the right time.
Conclusion
Based on the entire information we gave above, it can be concluded that medical exams are essentially important for every person. The risks associated with not doing so are fatal and no one would want that. There isn’t much to do in a physical exam other than a few simple tests once a year or once every two years. Spread the idea of healthy living among others including your friends and family members to ensure an improved health system throughout the world.