You might be trying to fit in a few physician visits at the end of the year before your health insurance deductible resets. Still, in between those appointments and all your holiday shopping, it’s essential to take the time to start thinking about your medical needs. Planning imaging scans can help you prevent surprise medical expenses. It can also help you schedule needed imaging during a time that fits within your budget and calendar. American Health Imaging makes it easy to plan imaging scans.
Why You Should Plan for Medical Imaging Before the End of The Year
It’s important to plan for medical expenses as much as possible. While you can never know what sudden illness or injury might pop up down the road, having a plan for your regular screenings and preventive scans will help you keep on top of your health—and your family’s health, too. Knowing in January that May is the month for your mammogram, July is when your spouse needs a lung cancer screening, and September is when you need to check in on your liver can help you budget for your imaging scans in advance. Planning out when and where you will get these scans means you will not forget about a needed screening and won’t have to postpone imaging because you’re on vacation or in the middle of a big work deadline. You’ll also know how much to set aside in any HSA or FSA plans that you may need to cover your costs.
Medical Imaging Scans for Ongoing Pain
It’s all too easy to postpone getting the necessary imaging for a painful knee or back. What if you need expensive treatment? But for many people, treating joint pain early on can be more cost-effective than delaying treatment. Imaging can help determine the exact cause of your pain so your doctor can get you started on a path to recovery. If your New Year’s resolution is to take steps to figure out what’s been causing your pain, AHI can help with imaging, such as:
- Arthrogram to diagnose knee or shoulder pain
- CT scan to diagnose abdominal pain
- Lumbar spine MRI to diagnose back pain
- Myelogram to diagnose nerve and back pain
- X-ray to diagnose ankle, foot, or hip pain
Medical Imaging Exams to Schedule for Diagnosing and Monitoring Chronic Conditions
Advanced imaging is also an important way to diagnose and monitor certain chronic conditions that may not be causing you physical pain but can have serious health effects. Early diagnosis of conditions like heart disease or liver disease can help your doctors keep an eye on your health. If you have risk factors for heart, kidney, liver, or other problems, AHI offers diagnostic imaging such as:
- Cardiac calcium scoring for heart disease
- CT scan for gallbladder or kidney issues
- NeuroQuant® 3D Image Processing for neurological conditions such as dementia
- FibroScan for liver irregularities, including fatty liver disease
- Ultrasound for abdominal aortic aneurysms
One-time screening for abdominal aortic aneurysms is recommended for all men 65 and older who are current or former smokers.
The Medical Imaging Exams to Get for Monitoring Cancer
Planning your cancer screenings is one of the most crucial steps you can take for your health. Early detection of cancer, when it is often more treatable, can save lives. If you have a family history of certain cancers, then these screenings are even more critical. AHI offers:
- Low-dose CT scans to detect lung cancer. These scans are recommended annually for heavy smokers 50 and older, or people who have quit smoking within the past 15 years.
- Screening mammograms and breast MRI to detect breast cancer. Women aged 40 and older should get an annual mammogram until age 55, and then they may choose to switch to a biennial screening if they remain at average risk for cancer. Women at high risk of cancer, including some women with dense breasts, may need a breast MRI instead of or in addition to a mammogram.
Many of these screenings are covered at little to no cost by insurance. With dozens of locations and extended hours, AHI makes it easy to get a screening at a time that’s convenient for you. Put those dates on your 2023 calendar now and detect any possible cancer early.
Don’t delay scheduling your essential screenings. Request an appointment at American Health Imaging today.