検診

• Reading: けんしん
• Romaji: kenshin
• Kanji breakdown: 検 (ken) — inspect, examine, check; 診 (shin) — diagnose, examine medically
• Pronunciation: /ke.n.ɕi.ɴ/

Meaning

Medical examination; health screening; a check-up conducted to detect or prevent illness.

Covers a range of health-screening activities from routine annual check-ups (定期検診) to disease-specific screenings such as cancer screening (がん検診). Differs from 診察 (examination of a patient's specific complaint) in that 検診 implies systematic, preventive screening. Local governments in Japan actively organise and subsidise various screening programmes for residents.

Examples

1. 市が実施する乳がん検診を毎年受けるよう、医師に勧められた。 My doctor recommended that I get the city-sponsored breast cancer screening every year.
2. 定期検診で血糖値の異常が見つかり、精密検査を受けることになった。 An abnormal blood sugar level was found during a routine check-up, so I ended up getting a detailed examination.
3. 会社の健康診断と個人の検診を合わせて受けると安心だ。 It's reassuring to combine the company health check with a personal screening.

Usage Guide

Context: medicine, public health, preventive care, workplace health, cancer screening

Tone: neutral

Origin & History

Compound of 検 (ken, inspect/examine) and 診 (shin, diagnose/examine a patient). Together they convey the systematic inspection and examination for health conditions.

Cultural Context

Era: Modern

Generation: All ages

Social background: General