Maintaining sound health is pivotal to ensuring a good quality of life, and regular medical checkups are the foremost method of doing so. It is commonly believed that visits to a primary care doctor or physician should be reserved for sickness only, which is not the case. Regularly scheduling meetings with medical health professionals is essential to ensure health and wellness and detect any prospective medical ailments in their initial stages.
Annual wellness exams are an incredible way of taking care of your health and should not be skipped even if you are not sick. They are as important as your health and should be treated likewise. Let us look into an annual wellness exam and what to expect while getting one done.
An annual wellness exam is a kind of preventive care that consists of several medical tests to ensure good health. Since preventive healthcare is focused on stopping health complications before they occur, annual wellness exams can diagnose such diseases in their early stages. Therefore, instead of going to a medical professional only when you feel too sick to function, you can stay healthy by nipping health complications in the bud.
As the name entails, annual wellness exams are carried out once every year and are distinguishable from other medical visits related to injury or disease. Although most insurances typically cover them, expenditure of some procedures like medical lab tests may not be covered and might have to be paid out of your pocket. That, however, does not diminish their medical significance. Most insurance policies pay for annual wellness exams once a year, but it is wise to check with your policy as the coverage may vary.
An annual wellness exam usually begins with mentioning your medical history, concerns, or complaints. A medical professional may also inquire about your lifestyle, diet, sexual health, and vaccination status. Some vital signs are checked, including:
Heart rate: the optimal range is typically between 60 and 100 heartbeats per minute.
Temperature: the average temperature is 98.9 degrees Fahrenheit.
Blood pressure: 120/80 mm Hg is considered the ideal blood pressure range.
Respiration rate: the optimal range lies between 12 to 16 breaths per minute.
A doctor may also look into your general appearance and overall health by simply talking and watching you, such as your mental quickness, memory, skin, and activeness.
Annual wellness checkups usually also include a heart and lung checkup. A doctor uses a stethoscope to detect an irregular heartbeat, any other hints at heart disease, crackles, wheezing, irregular breathing sounds, or any other clues pertaining to lung disease.
Doctors also monitor an individual’s throat for tonsils or other complications in an annual wellness exam. Other points of examination include thyroid, lymph nodes, eyes, nose, ears, sinuses, carotid arteries, and the quality of gums and teeth, as they depict an individual’s overall health.
A medical professional may check your abdomen by using a wide array of examination procedures to detect the presence of abdominal fluid, tenderness and examine liver size. A stethoscope is also used to listen to bowel sounds. A doctor also looks for any sensory or physical changes in your body extremities by checking the pulses in your legs and arms and examining joints for signs of abnormalities.
One of the most significant steps in an annual wellness exam is a neurological checkup, where a medical professional reviews a person’s mental state, reflexes, muscles and muscle strength, balance, and nerves.
A person’s skin and nails convey a great deal about their overall health, and thus a medical professional delves into any signs of dermatological complexities a person might have.
Although there are no definite rules about which laboratory tests should be included in an annual wellness exam, most doctors prescribe routine tests for better insight into an individual’s medical condition. These tests may include urinalysis, complete blood count and picture, and chemistry panel. Your healthcare professional may suggest additional tests if your medical condition hints at other diseases.
Scheduling a dialogue about your overall well-being and communicating any concerns or problems you may have with an experienced medical professional significantly enhances the quality of your life and may even prove life-saving in the long run. Realizing the importance of annual wellness examinations for your well-being and that of your loved ones is essential, and may even prove life-saving.
Don’t have health insurance? That’s nothing to worry about! Cura4U boasts the highest quality of wellness examinations at unimaginable prices. By choosing to become a part of the Cura4U family, you can get a comprehensive annual wellness check for as low as $99! Medical health professionals at Cura4U prioritize health over everything else, and thus you can get thoroughly tested for any underlying health complication related to liver function, cholesterol, heart diseases, diabetes, kidneys, and much more. The annual examination also offers physician consultation, so you can voice any concerns you might have and get the best possible treatment.
Cura4U believes in adopting a proactive approach towards healthcare and believes in prevention more than cure. Detecting diseases in their early stages can allow nipping them in the bud or devising meticulous treatment plans, and that is possible only through preventive healthcare. To stop you from making the expensive mistake of not prioritizing your health, Cura4U brings you its annual wellness test consisting of a Complete Blood Count, comprehensive metabolic panel, urinalysis, and lipid profile testing. To add to your ease, you can get these tests done at any Quest lab of your choice and a Cura4U physician will discuss the results with you to chalk out a suitable prevention or treatment plan or to advise you regarding any lifestyle changes.
Schedule your annual wellness exam right now by visiting Cura4U because you owe your body that much!
Sirpa Talvikki Autio MD
