10 Frequently Asked Questions about Health Check-Ups

A lot of people remain hesitant when the idea of a check-up surfaces. Truth be told, not everybody is a fan of annual physical examinations and screenings. Too often, people have the notion that one only visits the doctor when over-the-counter medicines fail to offer relief.

Manila Doctors Hospital’s Industrial Medical Services Department addresses the basic questions on health check-up and quashes misconceptions about some medical procedures.







1. What is a health check-up?
A health check-up is an appointment done to see your doctor for many different reasons, such as when you are experiencing a new health problem, looking for a specific diagnosis or treatment, or for ongoing follow-up of a long-standing problem or disease.

2. Why are check-ups important?
Health check-ups can be your primary prevention against diseases because through this, health problems can be addressed before they even start. It also helps in identifying a person’s risk factors for common chronic disease. It is also helpful in detecting disease that has no apparent symptoms (secondary prevention) and more importantly, a health check-up is important to promote healthy behavior.

3. How frequently should I go to my physician?
An annual health exam is ideal. However, people who are taking prescription medications require more frequent evaluations.

4. What are screening tests?
Screening tests are the means of finding diseases in people who do not yet have any signs or symptoms of the disease being screened. The goals of screening include helping people live longer and healthier lives.

5. What tests should I undergo?
The tests you need will depend on your age, gender, risk factors—like family history of cancer or hypertension—and lifestyle preferences. If you are at risk for a disease, your doctor will recommend proper screening tests. If you already have a health condition, the risks and benefits of the required tests and actions to be done afterwards will usually also be discussed.

6. Is it easy to tell if I have a serious heart disease?
Not necessarily. For example, the symptoms of heart attack are chest pains or discomfort but you may also experience shortness of breath, nausea, light-headedness, and pain or discomfort in one of arms, the jaw, neck or back. If you have any reason to suspect that you might have a heart disease, go to your health care provider. He or she may order an ECG or Stress Test for confirmation.

7. Is it true that ultrasound is for pregnant women only?
Absolutely not. Ultrasonography encompasses many different procedures. One is pelvic ultrasound which is used to evaluate pelvic pain, pelvic mass, vaginal bleeding in early pregnancy and after giving birth, pelvic infection, and trauma as well as to locate intrauterine devices of foreign bodies. Another procedure is renal ultrasound which is important for evaluating kidney diseases like cystic kidney disease, hydronephrosis, and chronic kidney diseases. Transrectal ultrasound is useful for early diagnosis of prostate cancer to determine the volume of the prostate gland for BPH therapy and to evaluate men with infertility problems or tumors in the reproductive of genitourinary tract.

8. What are the benefits of liver function tests for men?
The Liver Function Tests, or blood test to measure ALT (or SGPT) and AST (or SGOT) levels, among others, are used when liver disease is suspected. Examples of these include a history of jaundice, alcohol-induced liver disease, fatty liver disease, and diagnosed hepatitis.

9. At what age should a person be screened for cholesterol?
The screening for lipid disorders should start at age 35 for low-risk males. For individuals with increased risk for coronary heart diseases, screening should start at age 20-35 for men and at age 45 for women.

10. Is it true that PSA test is a cancer test?
No. The PSA test measures levels of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) in the prostate, not cancer. PSA is produced by the prostate in response to a number of problems, including an inflammation or infection of the prostate gland, enlargement of the prostate gland, among others.

Manila Doctors Hospital offers an extensive line-up of health packages that would best address your needs and requirements in attaining healing and wellness.

This holiday season, MDH is offering 50% off on all its room rates for elective procedures, such as annual health check-ups. Pre-booking is until November 30. Actual availment of procedures is on December 22-31. For inquiries, call (02) 524-3011 local 2640 or 8125.

• For inquiries on health check-up packages, call IMSD at (02) 524-3011 local 3350 or 8140. IMSD is open Mondays to Fridays from 8 am to 5 pm and on Saturdays from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm, and is located on the first floor of Manila Doctors Hospital, 667 United Nations Ave., Ermita, Manila.

source: interaksyon.com

Botox for beginners: When to get it, how to get it

Wrinkles. A word that most women do not like to hear and most definitely do not want to see on their faces. Basic facial movements, like smiling, frowning, and squinting, can eventually lead to having wrinkles, and they can make you look tired or angry even when you’re not.

One of the well-known treatments to reduce facial wrinkles safely and quickly is Botox or Botulinum toxin. An injection of Botox blocks muscular nerve signals. This in turn weakens the muscle so that it will not contract, therefore diminishing the chance of unwanted wrinkles.

Plastic surgeons at Manila Doctors Hospital’s Aesthetic Surgery and Dermatology Center explain the three most common Botox procedures and when you may need them. 







Excessive Underarm Sweating

Do your sweaty underarms irritate you and make you more self-conscious?

Excessive sweating is mostly caused by metabolic, neurologic, and other systemic diseases, but healthy people without any medical history of such can still experience excessive sweating. Strong bursts of emotion, like anxiety, and extreme heat can trigger hyperhidrosis, or the abnormally excessive sweating condition, but there are some people who suffer from hyperhidrosis all the time.

The procedure lasts for 45 minutes or less for both armpits and the results will be seen between 3 to 7 days after the procedure.

Crow’s Feet Botox

Most people also call crow’s feet as “laugh lines.” These eye wrinkles are inevitable signs of aging that begin to form at the corners of your eyes when you reach your mid-twenties. These lines appear because the skin loses its elasticity as we age. The body’s production of collagen and elastin, proteins that are responsible for the skin’s elasticity, lessen as the one age.

Frowning, laughing, and even smiling can cause these eye wrinkles to appear. It would be impossible for one to avoid smiling and laughing just to avoid these laugh lines on your eyes.

One way to minimize the appearance of crow’s feet is through Botox. It helps reduce eye wrinkles and relaxes your eye muscles so they will not contract. It blocks the chemical signal in your nerves that tell your muscles to function. The appearance of crow’s feet is minimized three to seven days upon the procedure.

Forehead Botox

Most people, especially women who are 30 and above, would periodically check their foreheads looking for signs of wrinkles. These fine horizontal or vertical wrinkles, commonly known as frown lines, start to appear across the forehead and eyebrows. Aside from the decreased production of collagen, other factors that contribute to the appearance of forehead wrinkles are smoking, too much sun exposure, and stress.

Botox can help reduce the appearance of these fine lines in the forehead. In crow’s feet, for instance, the botulinum toxin in botox relaxes the muscles and prevents them from contract that results in wrinkling of the skin.

Side effects of this non-surgical cosmetic procedure are minimized if done by a doctor. The Manila Doctors Hospital’s Aesthetic Surgery & Dermatology Center (ASDC) takes a holistic approach to cosmetic procedures. With reputable board-certified plastic surgeons and dermatologists, ASDC offers multiple services for your health, beauty, and wellness need in a hospital environment that’s both safe and responsive.

This month, for a limited period, ASDC offers discounted botox procedures. For more information, visit the MDH website, on Facebook, and Twitter. Or, call (+632) 524-3011 local 4527.

ASDC is located at the Ground floor of Manila Doctors Hospital, 667 United Nations Ave. Ermita, Manila.

 source: interaksyon.com

The good and evil truths about your food addictions

It’s hard to resist the simple addiction of sipping a hot cup of coffee or frappe, or perhaps the tingling sensation that sweet foods could give, or munching on those bags of chips while watching sappy movies late in the afternoon. But does your body appreciate them the way your taste buds do?

Dieticians and nutritionists from Manila Doctors Hospital’s (MDH) PROHEALTH Research and Education Center give you the truth about your addictions.







Coffee
• It’s known as a mental stimulant, which keeps us alert after some time.
• It boosts energy levels and prevents sleepiness, as the body releases adrenaline when we take it in.
• It may also help burn calories as it increases the body’s metabolism.

BUT: If you drink more than two cups a day, you may face the following:

PMS. While caffeine can decrease discomfort and that bloated feeling, it can cause a drop in blood sugar, which in effect aggravates PMS.

Cancer. Though there is no concrete evidence that caffeine alone may cause cancer, but if you love to drink coffee and smoke at the same time, then beware. Studies show that doing so may lead to cancer, particularly breast cancer.

Too much caffeine may lead to headaches, sleep problems and anxiety attack and bladder conditions as it acts as a diuretic to the body.

How to deal: If you can’t get rid of your frappes and espressos right away, try lessening your intake each day until you’re used to drinking small amounts or none at all. Substitute coffee for something healthier —nothing could be better than water.

Sugar
Sugar is a carbohydrate. It boosts your energy, helps sharpen memory, as glucose is the main sugar that feeds our brain cells. If taken moderately, it will help you gain weight.
BUT: This wickedly yummy treat may bring about these negative effects:
Hyperglycemia. A blood-sugar problem caused by too much sugar and improper diet.
Tooth decay. The bacteria in plaque depend on sugars to produce acids, which break down the enamel and start tooth decay.

Headaches and dizziness. Low glucose levels resulting from the severe dip after a high sugar intake tax the brain and cause headaches.

Other symptoms of too much sugar intake are great stress and fatigue, depression, anxiety, lack of mental alertness, and rapid mood swings. It may also delay wound healing, particularly for people with cancer or other disease conditions, as bacteria thrives on sugar as their immediate food source.

How to deal: Always eat your meals on time to prevent craving for sweets. Satisfy your sweet tooth by eating fruits instead.



Junk Food
Chips, packs of salted goodies, are the most convenient food-on-the-go. It is handy to eat or take anywhere, but junk food is precisely that—junk! It’s tasty (especially when it’s in your favorite flavor) but gives us nothing but empty calories (meaning we gain weight but we don’t get any nutrients from it).

BUT Junk food will never give us nutrition that our body needs. Some of its harmful effects are:
• Lack of energy
• Poor concentration
• Heart diseases
• High cholesterol

How to deal: Self-discipline is what you need to be able to swerve away from your junkie-addiction. If you’re really craving for something to munch on, the least you can do is substitute the flavored varieties with the plain-flavored ones, or better yet opt for a bag of popcorn (but not the microwaveable kind). A healthier option? Try crunching on dried or roasted unsalted nuts instead. It gives you the same comfort of chips without causing harm to your body.

Want to know more? Manila Doctors Hospital’s resident nutritionists and dieticians at the PROHEALTH Center offer diet counseling services that are tailor-fit to your lifestyle. They also offer nutrition and disease education on common medical conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, and obesity.

• PROHEALTH is open from Mondays through Saturdays from 8 am to 5 pm and is located at the ground floor of Manila Doctors Hospital, 667 United Nations Ave., Ermita, Manila. You may reach them at these numbers (02) 524-3011 local 4718. For more information, you may visit http://www.maniladoctors.com.ph.

source: interaksyon.com