Determining whether periodic health checkups have any preventive effect on deterioration in health among middle‐aged adults: A hazards model analysis in Japan

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to examine the long‐term impact of periodic health checkups (PHCs) on health outcomes among middle‐aged adults. METHODS: We used longitudinal data from 29 770 individuals (15 399 men and 14 371 women) aged 50–59 years in the baseline year (2005), obtained from a population‐based 14‐wave survey. PHC participants were defined as those who underwent PHCs for the first three consecutive waves, and we investigated the onset of inpatient care for five types of non‐communicable diseases (diabetes, heart disease, stroke, hypertension, and dyslipidemia) as well as poor self‐rated health and problems in the activities of daily living in the subsequent 11 waves. Cox‐proportional hazards models were used to estimate the impact of PHCs on health outcomes by employing the propensity score matching (PSM) method. RESULTS: Participation in PHCs was closely related to a respondent's socioeconomic status and health behavior. After controlling for these factors by PSM, the hazard models showed that PHCs postponed the onset of inpatient care for hypertension (hazard ratio, 0.56; 95% confidence interval: 0.36–0.85) among men, but PHCs had no impact on any other health outcomes in men or women. CONCLUSIONS: The preventive impact of PHCs on health deterioration is generally limited among middle‐aged adults. Future studies should address policy measures to enhance the effectiveness of PHCs.