Your guide to health screenings by age

Health screenings are an important part of preventive care. Screening tests look for signs of health problems or chronic diseases. They can often detect diseases before you experience symptoms. Diagnosing health problems early often means they’ll be easier to treat. Health screenings can be blood tests, imaging tests, physical exams or questionnaires. The screenings you…

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Taking depression screening to the next level

Neeta Goel, MD, is a board-certified family physician and chief medical officer for Inova’s ambulatory (outpatient) sites of care. She practices family medicine at Inova Primary Care — Ashburn HealthPlex. Depression is diagnosed in one in five adults in the United States. But for many other people, it often goes undiagnosed. In a 2022 survey of…

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Taking Medication as Prescribed: Why It Matters

Emmanuel Kim, PharmD, is a clinical pharmacy specialist. Medication only works if you take it — and take it correctly. But about 50% of the time, prescription drugs aren’t effective because people don’t take them as prescribed. Experts agree that for medicine to work as expected, you need to stick (adhere) to the medication plan…

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Is It Time for a Colonoscopy?

Luna Asrar, MD is a board-certified primary care physician practicing family medicine at Inova Primary Care – Ashburn Filigree Court. She enjoys treating people of all ages, with a special interest in health promotion and disease prevention. Seeing the bigger picture is important — especially when it involves screening for colorectal cancer (also called colon…

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Vaccines to Expect in an Annual Physical for Teens and Adults

Shreya Desai, MD is a board-certified primary care physician practicing family medicine at Inova Primary Care – Sterling. She believes in patient-centered care and has a special interest in preventive care and women’s health. When it comes to your health, prevention is the best cure. And vaccinations offer an easy way to practice prevention. But…

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Need More Exercise? 7 Tips to Help You Get Moving

Andrew Lam, MD is a board-certified primary care physician. Aaahh, exercise. You know you should do it. You even know it will make you feel great. But too often, it’s hard to get started and even tougher to keep an exercise habit going. The American Heart Association (AHA) recommends adults get 150 minutes of moderately…

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