End of Year To Do List -Health Check

You feel fine so you did not take time for wellness check-ups. Yes you were told they were a good idea but…

Whither you have health insurance or not there are certain wellness checkups you need annually. So read this wellness to do list and get the screening you need:

Bone density Scan (for osteoporosis)- for women over 65/men over 70, unless other health issues factor in. Yes men get osteoporosis!  According to results you may need to be tested again in 1, 2 or 10 years.  Painless and non invasive. ‘Porous’ bones affects over 10 million Americans.

Diabetes – over 45  & overweight you need to be checked for prediabetes. Just a quick blood test. If under 45 with one or more risk factors (high blood pressure, high cholesterol or Diabetes during pregnancy), you need the blood test.

Eye Exam – ‘Visual’ exam (what your eye sees) vs. ‘Eye’ exam (inside health of your eye) are recommended once every year or two dependent on age, medical history and findings of last exam. The eye provides tremendous information about overall health – if a trained eye looks in!

Heart Health – every one over 20 should have a ‘lipid profile’ (total cholesterol, components (HDL, LDL) and  triglycerides). If you have normal values – recheck every 5 years. After age 18 blood pressure checks every 2 years if normal.

Skin Test – cancer of skin most common form of cancer in US (listen to DocHandal’s podcast). Only a dermatologist can totally check every inch of your skin start at age 21 and repeat as frequently as the Doc tells you.

Stitches = Sutures

Trauma to our skin is all too common, cuts or wounds as we Docs call them need attention. This may simply mean cleaning, protecting but at other times repair with a needle and thread is required. Those that are deep or at angles need sutures-stitches!  Sutures are the handiwork that result from ‘stitching’ our skin together. Skip the needed stitches and run the risk of infection &/or horrific scaring. Let the expert DocHandal give you the inside ‘skinny’ on this minor surgical procedure.