Physicals

Physicals are checkups your doctor at Integrative Family Medicine and Urgent Care performs to assess your health. They play an important role in preventing you from suffering serious health problems by detecting diseases early before they start causing symptoms.

Having regular physicals ensures you protect yourself from potentially life-threatening conditions like:

• Type 2 diabetes
• Hypertension (high blood pressure)
• High cholesterol
• Stroke
• Heart disease
• Cancer

You might need physicals for specific purposes too, like starting a new job or taking up sports. Well-woman and well-man exams are also available.

Your provider begins your physical with a review of your medical history. They ask you how you feel, and you can raise any concerns about your health.

Integrative Family Medicine and Urgent Care providers follow functional medicine principles, so they look at everything that could be affecting your health, from diet and exercise to stress and your environment.

Next, your provider performs a comprehensive physical exam. They check your vital signs, including:

• Pulse
• Breathing rate
• Temperature
• Blood pressure
• Heart and lung sounds
• Physical reflexes

They look at your skin, hair, and nails, which often suffer if you have underlying health problems. Your provider assesses your reaction times, how easily you walk, sit, and get up, your balance, and how well you can see and hear.

They carefully feel certain areas of your body like the lymph nodes, thyroid gland, liver, and joints for any abnormalities.

Men might need checks of the penis, testicles, and prostate gland. Women may require an internal exam and a breast check. Evaluating your mental health is also an important part of your physical.

Some tests are standard during a physical exam. Depending on what your doctor finds out after your initial assessment, you might need some additional exams. Common tests include:

Blood draw and urinalysis:

Blood and urine are the most common lab tests. They detect infections, nutrient deficiencies, cholesterol, blood sugar levels, and signs of numerous diseases.

Integrative Family Medicine and Urgent Care also offers the dried urine test for comprehensive hormones (DUTCH), which can pick up hormonal imbalances.

Diagnostic imaging
You might need a diagnostic imaging procedure if your provider wants to see the interior of your organs and tissues. Standard diagnostic imaging procedures include X-rays, ultrasound and CT scans, and MRIs.

Cancer screening
Cancer screening tests include Pap smears to check for cervical cancer in women and stool sample tests to look for signs of gastrointestinal bleeding. Your provider tells you what screenings you need.