Why is it important to find health problems early?
Often, the earlier a disease is diagnosed, the
more likely it is that it can be cured or successfully managed. When you treat a disease early, you may be able to prevent or delay problems from the disease. Treating the disease early may also make the disease easier to live with.
How do you find health problems early?
Your doctor may suggest:
Screening tests, which find health problems before
symptoms appear. Examples of screening tests include mammograms to find breast cancer and colonoscopy to find colon cancer.
Diagnostic tests, medical exams, and self-exams, which find a disease or other health problem early in its course.
What health problems should you be tested for?
You and your doctor can use recommendations made by expert panels of health professionals to help you decide what screening tests you need. These panels develop screening recommendations based on:
Age, health, and gender.
Risk factors. Risk factors are things that make getting a disease more likely. They may include family history, such as having a close relative with cancer, and lifestyle habits, such as smoking. Cholesterol screening, for example, is recommended for people who have a family history of early coronary artery disease.
Whether or not you are pregnant. A woman who is pregnant or trying to become pregnant may be screened for genetic conditions and other conditions that may affect her or her baby.
Sometimes different expert panels make different recommendations. In these situations, talk with your doctor to decide which guidelines best meet your health needs.
When and how often you get screening tests may depend on your age, your gender, your health status, your risk factors, and the cost of testing. Your doctor may suggest screening tests based on expert guidelines. In some cases, testing is done as part of a routine
checkup.
When you are thinking about getting a screening test, talk with your doctor. Find out about the disease, what the test is like, how the test may help you or hurt you, and how much the test costs.
Ask your doctor about the limits of the test and treatment. For example:
Ask your doctor how likely it is that the test would miss a disease (false negative), show something that looks like you have a disease when you don't (false positive), or find a disease that will never cause a problem.
Ask your doctor about the treatment for the disease. There may be no treatment that helps with symptoms or helps you live longer. In this case, you may decide that you don't want the screening test.
Also think about what you would do if a test shows that you have the disease. For example, if you are going to be tested for osteoporosis, are you willing to take medicine or make lifestyle changes if the test shows that you have it?
Health Tools
Health Tools help you make wise health decisions or take action to improve your health.
Decision Points focus on key medical care decisions that are important to many health problems.
All states require newborn screening, although the tests
required vary from state to state. These tests can help find serious problems that could affect your baby's long-term health. They may include:
It's important for your baby to have
regularly scheduled checkups, often called
well-baby visits, starting shortly after birth. During
these visits, the doctor examines your baby for possible problems and asks you
questions about your baby's growth and development.
At each well-baby
visit, the doctor or nurse will check your baby's:
It's important for your child to continue to
have regularly scheduled checkups, often called
well-child visits. During these visits, your child's
doctor will check your child's growth and development and examine your child
for possible problems.
Checks at well-child visits include:
Behavioral and school concerns. Depending on the child's age, these may include temper tantrums, grades, relationship problems, and aggressive behavior that hurts
others emotionally or physically (bullying).
Blood pressure. It is important for your child to have his
or her blood pressure checked every year, beginning at age 3.
Regular
dental checkups are recommended for all
children once or twice a year.
Age-specific tests
Until your child is age 24 months, the doctor will measure the circumference of your child's head.
Until your child is age 5, the doctor will check for developmental problems, including two checks
for
autism. When your child is ages 10 through to 12, the doctor will check for scoliosis.
It's important for your teen to continue to have regularly scheduled checkups. At each
well-child visit, the doctor will check your teen's
growth and development and examine him or her for possible problems.
Checks at well-child visits include:
School and behavioral concerns, such as failing
classes or dropping out of school, relationship problems with friends and
family that affect home or school life, severe mood swings, lack of interest in
normal activities and withdrawal from others, being physically aggressive,
becoming sexually active, and using tobacco or drugs.
Before age 65, screening for osteoporosis isn't generally recommended. If you have risk factors, talk to your doctor about when to start screening.
For a screening checklist for women age 50 and older, see www.ahrq.gov/ppip/women50.htm.
Deciding about tests
It can be hard to decide whether you want to be screened for certain diseases or which type of test is best used. Combine medical information with your personal values to make a wise health decision.
Sometimes doctors automatically schedule routine tests because they think that's what patients expect. But sometimes research shows that testing may not be useful or worth the risks or costs. For more information, see Heart Tests: When Do You Need Them?
Screening, Adult Men
Screening in adults is intended to identify diseases that may develop as you age.
Routine checkups and screening are important to stay in good health.
How often men have the following tests depends on age, health, and
things that make getting a specific disease more likely.
Before age 65, screening for abdominal aortic aneurysm isn't usually recommended. After age 65, talk to your doctor about your risk if you have ever smoked cigarettes.
Before age 65, screening for osteoporosis isn't generally recommended. If you have risk factors, talk to your doctor about when to start screening.
For a screening checklist for men age 50 and older, see
www.ahrq.gov/ppip/men50.htm.
Deciding about tests
It can be hard to decide whether you want to be screened for certain diseases or which type of test is best used.
Sometimes doctors automatically schedule routine tests because they think that's what patients expect. But sometimes research shows that testing may not be useful or worth the risks or costs. For more information, see Heart Tests: When Do You Need Them?
Other Places To Get Help
Organizations
Agency for Healthcare Research and
Quality
540 Gaither Road
Suite 2000
Rockville, MD 20850
Phone:
(301) 427-1104
Web Address:
www.ahrq.gov
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) is
one agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. AHRQ
supports research initiatives that seek to improve the quality of health care
in America. AHRQ's mission is to improve the quality, safety, efficiency,
effectiveness, and cost-effectiveness of health care for all Americans. The website provides evidence-based information to help people make decisions about
health care services.
American Academy of Family
Physicians
P.O. Box 11210
Shawnee Mission, KS 66207-1210
Phone:
1-800-274-2237
Fax:
(913) 906-6075
Web Address:
www.familydoctor.org
The American Academy of Family Physicians offers information on adult and child health conditions and healthy living. Its website has topics on medicines, doctor visits, physical and mental health issues, parenting, and more.
American Academy of Pediatrics
141 Northwest Point Boulevard
Elk Grove Village, IL 60007-1098
Phone:
(847) 434-4000
Fax:
(847) 434-8000
Web Address:
www.aap.org
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) offers a
variety of educational materials about parenting,
general growth and development, immunizations, safety, disease prevention, and more. AAP guidelines for various conditions and links to other
organizations are also available.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(CDC)
1600 Clifton Road
Atlanta, GA 30333
Phone:
1-800-CDC-INFO (1-800-232-4636)
TDD:
1-888-232-6348
Email:
cdcinfo@cdc.gov
Web Address:
www.cdc.gov
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is
an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The CDC works
with state and local health officials and the public to achieve better health
for all people. The CDC creates the expertise, information, and tools that
people and communities need to protect their health—by promoting health,
preventing disease, injury, and disability, and being prepared for new health
threats.
KidsHealth for Parents, Children, and
Teens
Nemours Home Office
10140 Centurion Parkway
Jacksonville, FL 32256
Phone:
(904) 697-4100
Web Address:
www.kidshealth.org
This website is sponsored by the Nemours Foundation. It
has a wide range of information about children's health, from allergies and
diseases to normal growth and development (birth to adolescence). This website
offers separate areas for kids, teens, and parents, each providing
age-appropriate information that the child or parent can understand. You can
sign up to get weekly emails about your area of interest.
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (2010). Guide to Clinical Preventive Services, 2010-2011: Recommendations of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (AHRQ Publication No. 10-05145). Rockville, MD: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Also available online: http://www.ahrq.gov/clinic/pocketgd.htm.
American Academy of Pediatrics (2008). Bright Futures: Guidelines for Health Supervision of Infants, Children, and Adolescents, 3rd ed. Elk Grove Village, IL: American
Academy of Pediatrics.
American Academy of Pediatrics (2010). Diagnosis and prevention of iron deficiency and iron-deficiency anemia in infants and young children (0–3 years of age). Pediatrics, 126(5): 1040–1050. Available online: http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/126/5/1040.
Tarini BA (2007). The current revolution in newborn
screening. Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, 161(8): 767–772.
This information does not replace the advice of a doctor. Healthwise, Incorporated disclaims any warranty or liability for your use of this information. Your use of this information means that you agree to the Terms of Use.
How this information was developed to help you make better health decisions.
