Doctors say annual physicals are valuable

Reported by Susan Aldridge, PhD, medical journalist

Although current guidelines argue against the yearly physical exam, many doctors believe they are important.
At one time, you would expect the doctor to give you a thorough physical exam once a year. Now, however, clinical evidence has led to guidelines that say the routine physical isn't needed for those who have no symptoms. The doctor's time can be more usefully employed, they say, with more selective screening.

But do doctors agree with this? Researchers at the Denver Veterans Affairs Medical Center asked a group of 783 primary care physicians for their views. As many as 65 per cent said that the annual physical exam was necessary. They said that the annual physical improved doctor-patient relations, and most said that, in any case, the patients expected it. And most physicians are also continuing to carry out the annual physical. Given that many of the doctors believed the exams to have a genuine value in detecting early signs of illness, perhaps it is time for a fresh look at the guidelines?

Source
Archives of Internal Medicine 27th June 2005 Volume 165 pages 1347-1352