Preventive medicine is the cornerstone of a long and healthy life. At Triad Internal Medicine in Asheboro, North Carolina, Chelsea Poe, FNP, Kirstie Ferrell, FNP, and Dr. Lee MD, PhD, MHA, offer a wide range of preventive services to keep you from getting sick and help you avoid the progression of chronic illnesses. Call the office or schedule a preventive medicine visit online today.
Preventive medicine focuses on protecting your health, preventing disease, avoiding disability, and helping you avoid premature death. The foundational principle of preventive medicine is that it’s often easier to prevent acute and chronic illnesses than it is to treat them.
Triad Internal Medicine offers a broad range of preventive medicine services to help patients manage their health and reduce medical costs long-term.
Preventive medicine centers around physical exams that cover the following areas:
Disease screenings
Triad Internal Medicine customizes disease screenings based on your sex, medical history, and age. Most adults have diabetes, hyperlipidemia (high cholesterol), and hypertension (high blood pressure) screenings.
You may also need cancer screening tests, like a Pap smear for women or a prostate cancer screening test for men. Both men and women receive a recommendation for colorectal cancer screening (usually a colonoscopy) sometime after age 45. You may need other disease screenings, as well.
Screenings allow providers to find the earliest signs of disease. Often, recognizing a disease or its warning signs at an early point can help prevent it. Most screening tests, including lab tests and X-rays, occur in the office.
Adults don’t need as many immunizations as they had as children, but vaccines are still a central part of preventive care because they bring on disease resistance (immunization).
Every adult needs annual flu shots and a tetanus and diphtheria (Td) booster every 10 years.
Adults over 50 generally need a shingles vaccination, and pneumococcal conjugate vaccinations are usually recommended after age 65. Your provider may also recommend other immunizations.
Weight loss, exercise, healthy diet, good sleep habits, quitting smoking, and avoiding excessive alcohol reduce the risk of many chronic diseases.
Although preventive care mainly helps reduce your personal risk of disease, health improvements also delay disease progression. If you have diabetes or another chronic disease, your preventive plan includes lifestyle changes, medication, and other ways to support a healthy lifestyle and keep your disease under control.
Triad Internal Medicine recommends preventive exams at least once a year, but if you already have a chronic illness, you may need appointments more often.
Call Triad Internal Medicine or schedule an appointment online today to learn more about preventive care.