S/O: so are checkups for adults a waste of time?

[cathmom]

In your opinion?

 

Screening tests?

 

I'm still trying to get over that so many think well child checks are a waste.

[Parrothead]

Not all of them. I think a prostrate test for men, mamos for women, PAPs for women and other preventative tests are needed. A general check up if nothing is wrong doesn't do much unless blood work is done also to check iron, white blood cell, and other counts that may be useful to prevent problems in the early stages.

[MyBlueLobsters]

Not all of them. I think a prostrate test for men, mamos for women, PAPs for women and other preventative tests are needed. A general check up if nothing is wrong doesn't do much unless blood work is done also to check iron, white blood cell, and other counts that may be useful to prevent problems in the early stages.

:iagree:

[Jennifer in MI]

I am an advocate for annual visits to my doctor. My dad's cancer was caught because he went in for one. He wasn't having any symptoms and a urine test came back with blood in it. Further tests revealed bladder cancer. I thank God daily that he went in for his annual exam.

 

I used that as an excuse to get caught up on all my appointments this year. Luckily everything was okay! I don't plan to miss another one!

[fshinkevich]

I think checkups are important for all ages. Like at my DD most recent checkup it was discovered she had high blood pressure. Sure you can check this at home but I never would have thought to. Her last physical was perfect, we have no family history of high blood pressure (or any heart problems), she is not overweight, eats healthy foods and had no symptoms.

 

So we caught it early, ruled out other issues, and can now keep an eye on it.

 

One of my friends discovered a heart murmur that was not there before, or had not been caught before.

 

You just never know. Better safe than sorry, in my book.

 

Although I do agree on the issue of going to offices for a WELL check up when there are tons of sick people everywhere. I have heard of places that have separate waiting rooms and patient rooms for this - too bad more couldn't do this.

[Murphy101]

depends.

can be.

what are they doing during the check up?

if they are just going in for height/weight and list of current meds - seems rather pointless to me and a waste.

 

if they are doing a full physical and blood work up? Sure. I can see doing that every couple years in an otherwise healthy person. I wouldn't go yearly for it unless there was a previous problem though. Maybe every 3 - 5 years?

 

For me, a lot of it would depend on what the dr does in his check ups and the individual medical history.

 

for example, a lot of what would be done at my check ups are already being covered with my annual to every other year pregnancies.:)

[chaik76]

I rarely go in for a check-up. I will go when I reach an age where I need specific screening tests (although I will skip those that I don't think are necessary). I understand preventative medicine...which is why I do take my babies for most of their well-child check-ups...but I don't feel a visit is necessary every 3 months to one year for older children. For babies I go every 6 months, after 18 months, I'll take them yearly until they're three...then we go every other year.

For me, I haven't been to a "well" checkup in years. I get to go to the dr. often enough when sick that I just don't see any reason for it.

[stripe]

I was under the impression that global routine screenings in general cause a lot of unnecessary health scares / false positives (see this for more information).

 

I think well-child exams are different from well-adult exams because children grow and change so quickly, whereas we adults have a better sense of when we're experiencing problems and can schedule accordingly.

 

I personally am not crazy about doctors and don't find going to them to be incredibly helpful unless I have a problem. Even when I have had problems, I've had limited help from them.

[SapphireStitch]

A couple of books that might help you think through the decision:

 

"The Last Well Person" and "Worried Sick" both by Nortin M. Hadler, MD

[Ria]

My dad went in for his annual physical one year and his bloodwork showed a *slightly* elevated white cell count. He felt fine.

 

He has leukemia.

 

I think adult exams, with the appropriate bloodwork, are a very good idea, if not every year, at least every other year. Waiting until you have obvious symptoms only works for some diseases...for others, catching it early can make all the difference.

 

Ria

[Veritaserum]

I'm wishing I'd bothered with a comprehensive check-up for me. This last month has brought me news of a few concerning issues. The good news is, I'll probably live. :) The bad news is that I've been living with problems that could have been reduced/prevented if caught earlier.