How long before a physical examination should I take my blood pressure medication?
Taking antihypertensive drugs before physical examination will not affect the results of the examination. Therefore, it is recommended to take antihypertensive drugs according to regular time and dosage. Generally, routine examinations are often conducted during physical examinations, such as electrocardiogram, blood routine, urine routine, etc. The results of these tests will not be affected by antihypertensive drugs. It is not necessary to discontinue taking antihypertensive drugs for the purpose of the examination, which may affect the treatment of hypertension and be unfavorable to the patient's health.
The physical examination requires fasting blood collection from 7:30 to 8:30 in the morning, and it is best not to exceed 9:00. Late blood collection may result in inaccurate blood sugar values due to the influence of physiological endocrine hormones in the body (even though it is still fasting). Therefore, the examinee should collect blood as early as possible and should not delay.
Blood collection requires fasting, but medication for chronic diseases should be treated differently. For example, hypertensive patients need to take antihypertensive drugs every morning to maintain stable blood pressure. Abruptly stopping or delaying medication can cause a sudden rise in blood pressure and pose a danger. Taking antihypertensive drugs regularly and measuring blood pressure afterwards allows the physical examination doctor to evaluate the current antihypertensive regimen. The effect of taking a small amount of antihypertensive drugs on laboratory tests is minimal and negligible. Therefore, hypertensive patients should take their antihypertensive drugs before undergoing physical examination.
For patients with diabetes or other chronic diseases, they should also take their medication promptly after blood collection and should not interfere with regular treatment due to physical examination.
Medical history, especially the history of important diseases, is an important reference for physical examination doctors to determine the current health status of the examinee. Based on this, intervention measures can be formulated, which have a crucial impact on the prognosis of diseases. Some examinees may have a mindset of "testing" the level of physical examination doctors, believing that diseases can only be detected through tests and cannot be diagnosed through descriptions.
