Should your doctor test you for anxiety?

Medical group considering recommendation that doctors should test all adults

(WDEF) – A mammogram, colonoscopy and an anxiety test.

A national group is recommending that doctors add the anxiety test for their patients under  65.

That’s a draft recommendation by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force.

They would like to see anxiety screenings for primary care of adults without symptoms.

The group began evaluating studies on the topic before the pandemic. And now the doctors say it is more relevant than ever with the rise of mental health problems during the pandemic years.

The tests would be questionnaires about your fears or worries that interfere with normal activities in your life.

The task force says the benefit of getting people into helpful treatments outweighs the risk of bad screenings that could lead to unnecessary follow-ups.

They say anxiety disorders are the most common mental health complaints. About 40% of women and 25% of men suffer from them during their lives.

And there are high risk groups:

— African Americans

— People in poverty

— People who have lost partners

The public symptoms are panic attempts, phobias or always feeling “on edge.”

They say that 1 in 10 pregnant and postpartum women also suffer anxiety.

The anxiety screening recommendation is not a done deal just yet.

So far it is just a draft proposal, but the group generally goes along with such drafts.