"Healthy young women can be forgiven for being confused about how often they're supposed to be getting in to see their primary care doctor," Katherine Hobson writes for NPR's "Shots," noting, "After all, annual checkups in general have come under scrutiny."
According to Hobson, some providers say there is little evidence for routine pelvic or clinical breast exams, while cervical cancer screenings are recommended less frequently. However, Hobson notes that despite fewer medical tests, young women should not necessarily "skip that annual wellness visit with a gynecologist or other family practitioner."
For example, she explains that "there may be tests you aren't aware you should be getting," such as chlamydia and gonorrhea screenings for sexually active young women and at-risk older women, as well as HIV testing for everyone between ages 15 and 65.
Moreover, Hobson notes that "even if you don't need a physical exam, it's good to schedule periodic face-to-face discussion with your doctor about preventive care or other health concerns."
Citing Barbara Levy, an OB-GYN and vice president of health policy for the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, Hobson writes that "[w]omen often save up questions for an annual office visit that they think don't warrant a sick visit to the doctor during the year." She continues, "That could mean asking whether the irregularities of your period are normal, or why you're tired all the time, or what Zika means for your plans to conceive." Women might also want help determining the best form of contraception for their needs or when to start undergoing mammograms.
While not all of those concerns will "prompt a physical exam or test," they will help foster conversation and cultivate the patient-provider relationship, Hobson writes, quoting Wanda Filer, a family physician and president of the American Academy of Family Physicians. Hobson concludes that "those who do like to touch base [with a physician] every year shouldn't feel guilty about scheduling an office visit, or worry they're wasting the doctor's time ... If your primary aim is to chat, just say that up front" (Hobson, "Shots," NPR, 7/28).
