Periodic health examinations in women.

Periodic examinations offer the family physician the opportunity to establish and maintain the physician-patient relationship, to emphasize the importance of health-related behavior, to encourage proven screening maneuvers for common diseases and to detect unrecognized conditions. The major causes of morbidity among women vary according to stage of life, as does the impact of lifestyle and habits. An age-specific approach to the female periodic health examination is suggested, focusing on each of three periods: the childbearing years (ages 19 to 39), the middle years (40 to 64) and the senior years (65 and over).