[라포르시안] On Mother’s Day in May, the first gift I want to give to my parents is a health checkup. In the past two years, the COVID-19 outbreak has significantly increased the corona infection rate and death rate among the elderly over the age of 60, and the need for health checkups has risen more than ever due to the growing awareness that chronic diseases are fatal to infectious diseases.
In the upcoming post-corona era, with the fear of the emergence of another infectious disease, it is the most important time for parents to select essential health checkup items for prevention and preemptive treatment of chronic diseases in the elderly and to intensively prevent and manage them.
As the number of infections and deaths among elderly patients with many underlying diseases increases in the aftermath of the corona virus, it is necessary to pay attention to strengthening the immune system, which is relatively weak in the elderly. In particular, strengthening immunity is an urgent priority to prevent viral diseases. Immunity is the body’s defense system against foreign substances, bacteria, and viruses, and is the force that prevents pathogens from penetrating the body or neutralizes pathogens.
Chronic disease management in the 60s and 80s, the age of the parents, is an essential condition for preventing all diseases. In order to prevent digestive diseases, cardiovascular diseases, musculoskeletal diseases, and endocrine diseases, early detection of disease risk factors and neglect of minor symptoms can cause a decrease in the body’s immunity.
According to statistics on the main causes of death in 2020 published by the National Statistical Office, the main causes of death over the age of 60 are cancer, heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, liver disease, pneumonia, and Alzheimer’s disease. Among the basic health check-up items, gastroscopy should be performed every two years from the age of 40, and abdominal ultrasound should be performed concurrently. Colonoscopy begins at the age of 50 and is performed every 3 to 5 years (1 to 2 years for patients with polyp removal).
Hplus Yangji Hospital Family Medicine Specialist Jeong Hwi-soo recommended, “If you have hyperlipidemia, diabetes, or high blood pressure risk factors, it is recommended that you receive a carotid ultrasound at an appropriate interval to check for cholesterol deposits in the blood vessels after consulting with your doctor.”
Lung disease test – low-dose chest CT scan
Lung cancer is also the cancer with the highest mortality rate for those aged 60 to 80 years. Unlike cancers with a high early diagnosis rate, such as stomach/colon cancer, lung cancer tends to be invisible on X-rays when it is small. Currently, the national cancer screening system allows low-dose chest CT scans for high-risk groups aged 54 to 74 years.
Early diagnosis of lung cancer is important. If you are a long-term smoker, have been exposed to secondhand smoke, or have a family history of lung cancer in your immediate family, it is recommended to have a low-dose chest CT scan every two years with a low radiation exposure burden and relatively inexpensive cost. In particular, unlike gastric and colorectal cancer, lung cancer is not easy to treat, and metastasis to other organs such as the brain and liver can progress rapidly, so preemptive testing is essential.
Cardiocerebrovascular disease test
To check cardiovascular status, parents over the age of 60 who have at least one of the five risk factors such as high blood pressure, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, smoking, and obesity should have coronary artery CT and brain MRA tests. Heart disease is one of the diseases that record the highest mortality rate among middle-aged people along with lung disease and cerebrovascular disease. There are three major coronary arteries that supply blood to the heart, and if any one of them is blocked, the risk of myocardial infarction increases.
On the other hand, the brain MRA test, which can confirm cerebrovascular disease, can detect cerebral aneurysms with a high risk of cerebral blood vessel stenosis and cerebral hemorrhage at an early stage. .
Dementia Test – Alzheimer’s Screening Test
Dementia is classified into Alzheimer’s dementia, vascular dementia, and other dementias (alcohol, drugs, endocrine diseases, etc.), and Alzheimer’s accounts for more than 70% of dementia. The initial symptoms are accompanied by mental behavioral abnormalities such as memory impairment, disorientation (decreased ability to recognize time, place, and people), language and cognitive dysfunction, aggressive behavior, depression, and sleep disturbance. If Alzheimer’s progresses to a large extent, daily life such as urinary incontinence, gait disturbance, and body rigidity becomes difficult, and complications such as pneumonia and bedsores may appear. If any of these symptoms is suspected in people over the age of 60, an Alzheimer’s screening test such as a cognitive function test should be performed at a neurologist or a psychiatrist.
In addition, although it is not currently included in the national cancer screening list, there is a high incidence of prostate cancer in men over the age of 65, and there are many cases of metastasis to the pelvis and vertebrae, so caution is required. Prostate cancer diagnosis is performed with a blood test (PSA), and when the blood test level rises, it can be confirmed whether it is due to an enlarged prostate or cancer through a biopsy, so appropriate follow-up measures are sufficiently possible.
For women, uterine ultrasound and mammography are performed. Mammography (X-ray) is included in the national basic examination, but breast ultrasound is not included. Therefore, it is recommended that people with a family history (direct line) and dense breasts have an examination once every two years. It is also recommended to undergo thyroid ultrasound, musculoskeletal examination (cervical and lumbar spine MRI & CT), bone density test, and immunity test once.
Specialist Jeong Hwi-soo emphasized, “In an era where preemptive treatment of chronic diseases is essential in the aftermath of the corona virus, active health check-ups are the top priority for preventing diseases and managing health in order to ensure proper prevention and early implementation of related treatments suitable for parents’ health conditions.” did.