Women’s Health Month Series: Annual Screenings

To acknowledge girls’s well being all through the month of Might, Dignity Well being Medical Teams can be sharing perception from 4 physicians throughout completely different specialties about matters which can be essential to girls’s well being.

First up in our Girls’s Well being Month collection is Anila Chadha, MD, with Dignity Well being Medical Group — Bakersfield. Dr. Chadha is a household drugs doctor and discusses the significance of annual screenings and preventative care.

What are necessary screenings that girls of various ages ought to make certain to not skip?

Dr. Anila Chadha: The first step is realizing the assorted screening exams which can be obtainable to girls; step two is making certain you’re having them finished on the acceptable time in your life. Early detection of a medical drawback, together with most cancers, might be life-saving and might scale back the chance of problems.

Necessary screenings and beneficial ages:

• Cervical most cancers screening with Pap smear — begin on the age 21 and repeat each 3 years
• Breast most cancers screening with mammogram — screenings ought to happen yearly beginning at age 40
• Colorectal most cancers screening — begin at age of 45 with colonoscopy or stool take a look at; intervals of repeat testing will depend on earlier outcomes and private threat components
• Lung most cancers screening — for girls aged 50-80 who’ve a 20 pack-year* smoking historical past or have give up smoking within the final 15 years. *A “pack-year” is a option to measure smoking publicity and refers to smoking one pack of cigarettes per day for the final 20 years.
• Osteoporosis screening — beginning at age 65 with an annual bone measurement take a look at.

Are there generally ignored well being circumstances that have an effect on girls disproportionately to males?

Dr. Anila Chadha: Coronary artery illness, attributable to plaque build-up within the arteries that provide blood to the center, is the main reason behind loss of life in girls. In girls, typical illness signs like chest ache could as a substitute current as higher again ache, jaw ache, shortness of breath and sweating. These signs might be generally ignored and if undiagnosed may ultimately result in a coronary heart assault.

The incidence of urinary incontinence — or the lack of bladder management — in girls is way larger than males, and isn’t usually talked about. Therapy for this situation is attainable and might vary from treatment to surgical procedure. Girls ought to remember to carry up potential signs of urinary incontinence throughout their annual wellness appointments.

Lastly, Consideration Deficit/Hyperactivity Dysfunction (ADHD) has a much less frequent analysis in younger women than boys, mostly as a result of signs of ADHD current otherwise in women. Whereas boys could have extra bodily aggressive signs, women with ADHD extra usually current with lack of focus or low vanity. These signs in women might be uncared for and subsequently deprive women of therapy, resulting in additional psychological well being issues in maturity.

Attain out to your major care doctor to debate and schedule annual screenings, or seek the advice of our “Discover a Physician” device to discover a Dignity Well being Medical Group physician close to you.

Proceed to test the Dignity Well being Medical Teams weblog for extra Girls’s Well being Month reminders all through the month.