Getting a physical tomorrow morning

[Mr.Sea]

Tomorrow I am going for a long overdue physical. My last one was when I was 18 or 19. I am 25 now. What should I request my doctor test for in my blood?

-Testosterone levels
-Full STI panel

Anything else that would be worth knowing?

[Kris81]

finger in the bum! finger in the bum!!!

Seriously, just ask them whatever you need. Most good doctors can assume what tests are a necessity based on your age/weight/health, as long as you're honest with them

[Rosibal]

You may want to ask him if you are due for your antitetanus vaccine shot.....you should get one every 10 years.

Good luck!

[HTTP04]

Colonoscopy

[Simaahoy]

make sure he changes his gloves

[kingrukus]

How long did it take to get an appointment? My doc's office is telling me I need to wait 4 months from the time I make an appt to the actual appt date. Ridiculous - I think i am going to switch docs soon.

[AcidBomber]

How long did it take to get an appointment? My doc's office is telling me I need to wait 4 months from the time I make an appt to the actual appt date. Ridiculous - I think i am going to switch docs soon.

4 months? that's some major patient overload.

[wilsonlam97]

Prostate exam!

[Mr.Sea]

How long did it take to get an appointment? My doc's office is telling me I need to wait 4 months from the time I make an appt to the actual appt date. Ridiculous - I think i am going to switch docs soon.

About 2 weeks.

[wilsonlam97]

About 2 weeks.

You seriously gotta do a prostate exam man! You need to make sure you're healthy.

[menaknow]

How long did it take to get an appointment? My doc's office is telling me I need to wait 4 months from the time I make an appt to the actual appt date. Ridiculous - I think i am going to switch docs soon.


For my physical I got an appointment in May 2013 :confused:

[Mark77]

-Testosterone levels


Ummm, what relevance is this?



Anything else that would be worth knowing?

Anything in your past that might give you some risk factors for future disease? Any diabetics in the family? Thyroid disease? Doctors don't just generally tick off every box on the test worksheet. And for good reason -- tests aren't free, and ordering minimally or irrelevant tests like testosterone just drives up healthcare costs.

Likewise...


Colonoscopy

You know how much those cost? $500-$700 or so. Unless in response to a medical indication -- completely innappropriate for a 25-year old.

[JAC]

finger in the bum! finger in the bum!!!

They check for prostate problems with bloodwork, now. My young, attractive female doctor did do a thorough check for testicular issues and hernias, though. ;)

[Mark77]

They check for prostate problems with bloodwork, now. My young, attractive female doctor did do a thorough check for testicular issues and hernias, though. ;)

PSA doesn't replace the manual palpation process in the screening of older men for prostate tumours. Although eventually MRIs will get cheap enough for routine use (which brings up the problem of unnecessary treatment).

[Jimboski]

They check for prostate problems with bloodwork, now. My young, attractive female doctor did do a thorough check for testicular issues and hernias, though. ;)

Got any further then that? Just kidding!

[JAC]

Got any further then that? Just kidding!

LOL. Not for several years, according to Markbot.

[Jimboski]

LOL. Not for several years, according to Markbot.

Who or what Is Markbot? Mark77?
If Markbot Is Indeed Mark77 then how does he know? Stalker!

[JAC]

Who or what Is Markbot? Mark77?
If Markbot Is Indeed Mark77 then how does he know? Stalker!

Naw, he made they comment that only older men get the backdoor treatment for prostate checks these days, so I have several years to go.

[Jimboski]

Naw, he made they comment that only older men get the backdoor treatment for prostate checks these days, so I have several years to go.

Oh I see!

[Mark77]

Oh I see!

Why do you see? Are you in need of a digital examination of your posterior?

[Jimboski]

Why do you see? Are you in need of a digital examination of your posterior?

I see because I have eyes, Why else!?
If someone around the age of 20 requires one then sure why not?

[Mars2012]

You won't need the annual probe until you are a lot older. My husband's doctor cracked a joke about most men secretly being afraid that they might actually like it.:lol:

[Royalsoldier]

How long did it take to get an appointment? My doc's office is telling me I need to wait 4 months from the time I make an appt to the actual appt date. Ridiculous - I think i am going to switch docs soon.

My doctor takes 2-3 weeks to see me and I can request to be squeezed in for cancellations - 4 months is ridiculous.

[kingrukus]

4 months? that's some major patient overload.

Yup, time for me to switch my doctor.

What about going to a more general, walk-in style clinic and getting a physical done there? There seems to be many of these in Toronto... I do not see anything wrong with this?

[RolandCouch]

You know how much those cost? $500-$700 or so. Unless in response to a medical indication -- completely innappropriate for a 25-year old.

$500? I didn't have to pay anything when I got one and I was younger than OP at the time.

[Mark77]

$500? I didn't have to pay

You found a doctor to work for free, an endoscope magically leaped out of Olympus' factory to the hospital, and that midazolam in your IV was conjured out of thin air?

[RolandCouch]

You found a doctor to work for free, an endoscope magically leaped out of Olympus' factory to the hospital, and that midazolam in your IV was conjured out of thin air?

Is the procedure not normally covered by OHIP? I don't know?

All I know is I had one in my early 20s and did not pay anything out of pocket (nor do I recall having a benefits card that I gave or anything - just my OHIP).

[Mark77]

Is the procedure not normally covered by OHIP? I don't know?

All I know is I had one in my early 20s and did not pay anything out of pocket (nor do I recall having a benefits card that I gave or anything - just my OHIP).

Okay, so some insurance company paid for it, and you had to pay for the insurance. That's not quite the same as it costing nothing. If doctors started sending non-symptomatic 25-year-olds for colonoscopies....the insurance plans probably would collapse, and certainly there's not enough gastroenterologists to barely keep up with the current workload, nevermind have a bunch of unnecessary stuff dumped on them.

[RolandCouch]

Okay, so some insurance company paid for it, and you had to pay for the insurance. That's not quite the same as it costing nothing. If doctors started sending non-symptomatic 25-year-olds for colonoscopies....the insurance plans probably would collapse, and certainly there's not enough gastroenterologists to barely keep up with the current workload, nevermind have a bunch of unnecessary stuff dumped on them.

I don't know how you got from my post that an insurance company paid for it. Like I said I did not give in any sort of benefits card or anything.

Just a quick google brings up sites like this saying 100% OHIP covered

http://www.gtaendoscopy.com/gta-endoscopy-services-in/2011/06/causes-of-colorectal-cancer.html

Side note: Insurance plans would collapse? Seems to me like prevention is usually cheaper than treatment, but I'm not a doctor (or engineer)

[Mark77]

I don't know how you got from my post that an insurance company paid for it. Like I said I did not give in any sort of benefits card or anything.

Just a quick google brings up sites like this saying 100% OHIP covered


Yeah OHIP is an insurer...



Side note: Insurance plans would collapse? Seems to me like prevention is usually cheaper than treatment, but I'm not a doctor (or engineer)

For 25-year-olds with no symptoms? That's the problem here with a colonoscopy -- practically no 25-year-old gets colon cancer, and even the most aggressive screening programs for people with heriditary colon cancer don't really start until one's in their 40s.

[RolandCouch]

Yeah OHIP is an insurer...




For 25-year-olds with no symptoms? That's the problem here with a colonoscopy -- practically no 25-year-old gets colon cancer, and even the most aggressive screening programs for people with heriditary colon cancer don't really start until one's in their 40s.

I thought you were implying that OHIP did not cover the procedure and that you would need private insurance or have to pay cash for the procedure.

[Mark77]

I thought you were implying that OHIP did not cover the procedure and that you would need private insurance or have to pay cash for the procedure.

Well you have to pay OHIP at the end of the day. Don't you?

[RolandCouch]

Well you have to pay OHIP at the end of the day. Don't you?

This is not what I am arguing. I thought you were saying that the costs of the examination were not covered by OHIP, which they are.

If you want to argue just for the sake of arguing I can have with you though. No, I don't pay for OHIP costs, so my procedure was free.

[TheRequiem]

How long did it take to get an appointment? My doc's office is telling me I need to wait 4 months from the time I make an appt to the actual appt date. Ridiculous - I think i am going to switch docs soon.

I'm thinking of switching too. My current doc is booking Physicals 13 months out (yes, over 1 year).

[Psubs]

I donate blood every 2 months. They screen for stuff and would let me know if something bad was going on.

I crap twice a day and clean my butt every day. About a year ago, I felt a bump on the wall that felt a bit patchy. I monitored it and it never got bigger so didn't freak out or bother to get it checked. After a couple of months it shrank and went away. Phew!

I think my last physical was over 10 years ago. I just turned 35, eat like 9-10 eggs per week, bacon twice a week. I have cut out McDonald's for 4 years, BK for 2 and now rarely eat processed fast food.

[manmanny]

finger in the bum! finger in the bum!!!

Seriously, just ask them whatever you need. Most good doctors can assume what tests are a necessity based on your age/weight/health, as long as you're honest with them

He is 25 so no need of that.

[Just thinking]

You are young and your physician will likely order routine blood tests and that's it. You do not need a colonoscopy, nor do you need a PSA. These are both for men signficantly older than you and are completely unnecessary at this time. You will only need your testosterone checked if there is something pointing in the direction that it may be out of whack (low sex drive, etc.).

BTW, there is new research recently published looking at the efficacy of treating prostate cancer in very early stages i.e., those found with the PSA. Morbidity and mortality were found to be much the same. As a 25 year old, having a colonoscopy and PSA carries a MUCH higher rate of false-positive than a true-negative result, therefore these tests are not recommended.

I think what Mark77 was trying to say with the costing of the colonoscopy is that nothing in our healthcare system is free. He is absolutely correct. Whether or not you pull out your wallet at the time of the test is irrelevent. As an outpatient, the hospital or clinic bills OHIP for any medical care you have, with the exception of CT and MRIs which come out of the operating budget of the facility. Inpatient care also comes out of the operating budget. But at the end of the day, we all pay the costs through taxes. Even if you don't pay a lot of tax, you still see the result in lower availability of other governmentally funded services.

Ever wondered why Americans pay so much lower taxes than us? Our "free" universal healthcare system. Not free, but certainly accessible.

Don't worry about your physical - they're easy and straight forward. Do you need this for a job? If so, you may get drug tested. Marijuana is the drug that stays detectable in your system the longest due to metabolites, although other drugs can be detected by hair follicle testing. The only fool-proof method of passing is to cut your hair and abstain from pot for 4 weeks.

I am sure that this does not apply to you, but someone on RFD may find this information of use.

[mbg]

make sure he changes his gloves

it should probably be a user fee if you want him to keep changing the glove... can get kind of expensive.