A complete physical examination is a general review of the body performed by a healthcare practitioner. The general health examination covers most of the body’s essential systems, including the heart, lung, gut, and nervous system examination.
An additional examination can be performed depending on the clinical scenarios. The whole purpose of a complete body health check-up is to confirm any present issues and find possible pathologies that are present but yet to be diagnosed.
Clinical history and physical examination have been integral since the advancement of medical treatments. Yet, with the advance of technological investigations, many diseases are diagnosed, depending on the results obtained from blood tests and imaging studies. In addition, most illnesses are diagnosed earlier using modern technology when physical examination could find nothing, for instance, prostate or colon cancer, and more.
Irrespective of all genders, ages and fitness levels, everyone should consider having a regular health check-up. However, before seeking medical guidance through an online doctor consultation in Toowoomba, you should know why having your whole body checked up is essential.
What is a regular general health check-up?
A regular general health check-up involves an examination of the human body functioning by a qualified healthcare practitioner. The process is comprehensive, involving analysis of the entire body systems including but not limited to neurological, systemic, muscular, psychosocial, gastrointestinal, respiratory, urological, ophthalmology, and internal organ health.
A general health check-up involves subjective understanding and answers to a few lifestyle factors by the patient, a diagnostic assessment by the general physician using medical equipment, and screening blood tests.
What happens during a full-body health examination?
Before a physical examination is performed, the doctor will ask for consent from the concerned patient. The physical examination usually starts with checking the vital signs, including the heart rate, respiratory rate, blood pressure, and temperature.
Generally, there are four parts of physical examination:
- Inspection: looking for signs
- Palpation: feeling for signs
- Percussion: tapping for signs used when doing a lung or gut examination
- Auscultation: listening with the stethoscope
Not all of these will be present in the examination of the system, but most will do.
Depending on the expertise and knowledge of the doctor, the sequence of the systems covered may be different. Nevertheless, all physical examinations are meant to determine more about the patient’s current disease or possible diseases that are yet to be diagnosed.
During the physical examination, the healthcare practitioner keeps the patient as comfortable as possible.
How often should one get a health check-up?
Modern medicine has advanced vastly, enabling doctors to screen, detect and investigate health conditions earlier. It helps detect primarily hereditary or familial diseases through genetic, molecular, or blood screening in their early stages. An annual health check is a must for all adults or at a frequency as advised by the general physician. In addition, yearly health check-ups are recommended for family members suffering from chronic illnesses, such as hypertension, diabetes, high cholesterol, arthritis, heart disease, and more.
If you want to know more about how at Hooper Medical Centre, you can have your health examined by a doctor, please get in touch with us.
