FAQs

General

  • Dr. Abendroth has multiple board certifications, but his core training is in general practice family medicine. He has over 10 years of experience in primary care, emergency medicine, and inpatient hospital medicine.

    He practices a fusion of conventional, lifestyle, integrative, and functional medicine—selecting the most effective elements from each and tailoring them to each patient. His approach is root-cause oriented and aligned with Medicine 3.0, emphasizing proactive, preventive care while also diagnosing and treating active medical conditions. He integrates advanced training and diagnostics with real-world health data and a robust physician-patient relationship to develop a comprehensive understanding of each patient’s health and guide long-term strategies for achieving the best possible outcomes.

  • We specialize in what primary care should be — proactive, preventive, personalized, and healthspan-oriented. But standard primary care today is something else. It’s rushed, impersonal, based on population guidelines rather than on you, and is almost exclusively sick-care oriented.

    Health insurance companies ask you to select or be assigned a primary care provider within their network. We do not accept assignment as a primary care provider with any insurance company, and we are not in-network for any insurance company.

    For our members, Dr. Abendroth is their personal physician. Some maintain a relationship with their traditional PCP, often for insurance purposes, while others do not. We manage nearly all conditions that a conventional primary care doctor would manage, and many that they would not.

    Because our work focuses on keeping our patients as healthy as possible, we cannot offer urgent care services. For things like lacerations, sore throats, twisted ankles, and other urgent-care issues, we encourage patients to use appropriate local resources. We will coordinate care and expect our patients to reach out whenever they need assistance.

    Because our patient panel is limited, we cannot offer vaccines, which require bulk purchasing and have expiration dates, making an in-clinic vaccination program unworkable. Our members often obtain vaccines at their pharmacy, or if they retain a traditional PCP, they may get them there.

    We do not currently perform Pap smears or pelvic exams, and recommend that women have annual pelvic exams with a gynecologist. We also do not provide pregnancy care.

  • We routinely have patients who fly in from out of state for their Precision Health Assessment. Establishing care in person lets us legally treat you in your state year-round, and your annual PHA, included with membership, maintains that capability.


    Our location, just 10 minutes from the Des Moines International Airport and some of Iowa's best hotels, makes the trip convenient and stress-free.

  • At this time, the minimum age for our concierge direct care patients is 18.

Medical Frameworks

  • Conventional medicine is the standard system of care in hospitals and clinics, focused on diagnosing and treating disease using well-researched medical interventions. It relies on extensive clinical research, medications, procedures, and guidelines from major medical organizations to manage both acute and chronic conditions.

    Conventional medicine is strong, often heroic medicine, and it plays a critical role in healthcare. While highly effective for acute problems and advanced disease, it is largely reactive—generally addressing illness after it develops.

    Dr. Abendroth is board-certified by the American Board of Family Medicine and is an active member of the American Academy of Family Physicians. He has extensive experience as an emergency department physician, inpatient hospitalist, and primary care doctor.

  • Integrative medicine is a patient-centered approach that combines conventional medical care with evidence-based complementary therapies and options. It emphasizes treating the whole person—body, mind, and environment—while maintaining a strong foundation in standard diagnostics and treatment. Care plans often incorporate nutrition, lifestyle strategies, and selected non-pharmacologic therapies, alongside medications or procedures when appropriate, to improve outcomes, reduce symptom burden, and support overall well-being.

    Integrative medicine has no downside because it only adds safe options to the repertoire of therapies available in conventional medicine. These additional options virtually never increase risk and often actually de-risk the patient by shifting away from medications and procedures toward other options and strategies when appropriate.

    Dr. Abendroth completed a two-year fellowship in integrative medicine at the University of Arizona in Tucson in 2023, and has been board-certified by the American Board of Integrative Medicine since 2024.

  • Lifestyle medicine is a clinical approach that uses targeted changes in daily behaviors to prevent, treat, and often reverse chronic disease and, by extension, improve vitality and prolong healthspan. It focuses on six core domains—nutrition, physical activity, sleep, stress management, risky substances, and social connection—to address the underlying drivers of conditions like insulin resistance, cardiovascular disease, obesity, preventable cancers, depression, and more. Rather than relying primarily on medications, it applies structured, evidence-based interventions to improve physiology, prevent medical problems, and sustain long-term health and performance.

    Many medical conditions are not suitable for treatment with lifestyle medicine alone, especially acute illnesses and injuries, but it forms the core of preventing and treating most chronic conditions, as well as enhancing and protecting physical and cognitive performance.

    Dr. Abendroth is board-certified in Lifestyle Medicine by the American Board of Lifestyle Medicine since 2019 and is a member of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine.

  • Functional medicine is a systems-based clinical approach that seeks the underlying drivers of health and disease, viewing the person as a complex, interconnected system rather than a collection of disconnected organs and symptoms. It aligns well with Dr. Abendroth’s general philosophy of an evolution-informed understanding of health and disease by examining how genetics, physiology, environment, and lifestyle interact. It uses a detailed history and selective testing to understand why a problem is occurring. Care is individualized and often combines conventional treatments with nutrition, lifestyle strategies, and other targeted therapies typically aimed at resolving underlying causes whenever possible.

    Functional medicine can be especially helpful for difficult, incompletely understood conditions for which there is no highly effective single-drug pharmaceutical option for most patients, such as irritable bowel syndrome, chronic fatigue, and more.

    However, it is not without weaknesses. Sometimes, it probes the boundaries of medicine by relying on biochemistry and molecular biology without waiting for outcome data. Much of the testing and treatment marketed under the name has not been rigorously studied. That does not necessarily mean they do not work, but when evidential quality is low, the risk-to-reward ratio should be highly favorable, and safe & effective conventional options should generally not be passed over. Secondly, the label is unregulated and used by practitioners with widely varying training and standards. In the hands of inadequately trained, insufficiently critical, or unethical practitioners, supposed functional medicine can be ineffective or even dangerous, with evidence for safety and efficacy apparently being left at the door.

    Abendroth Modern Medicine is not a wellness center, an IV bar, or a medspa, despite some areas of overlap in the marketing Venn diagram. For that reason, we feel the need to expound on this topic to demonstrate how we differ from nearly all other functional medicine practices in Iowa, a state where, for some reason, functional medicine and actual medicine rarely seem to occur together.

    Dr. Abendroth uses the framework discussed in the first paragraph, while applying the same evidence standards and risk-to-reward assessment to every test and intervention in his practice. The lower the evidence or the potential reward, the lower the tolerance for risk; as expected benefit approaches zero, so does risk tolerance.

    For example, we do not offer IV infusions for general wellness. IV tubing is made of flexible PVC, a toxic material known to leach plasticizers and other chemicals into the liquids that pass through it, with evidence of at least endocrine disruption in animal studies. It is coming under increasing scrutiny by European health agencies, and even the FDA has issued cautions to limit exposure for pregnant women and newborns. Plasticizers are often removed from products after enough evidence of harm, or public pressure, accumulates. But they are replaced with other plasticizers that aren’t necessarily safer—they just haven't accumulated as much evidence of harm yet, such as products that advertise they are BPA-free but don’t mention that they now contain BPS and BPF. While the degree of risk is likely small in humans, the lack of evidence of benefit of IV nutrients in people who are capable of eating nutritious food, combined with a real but unknown risk of harm, leads us to recommend against IV infusions except when the expected benefits are clear, such as when IV antibiotics are needed to treat a serious infection.

    That’s an example of a treatment offered in what we call the “wellness medspa” version of functional medicine that we do not offer.

    For an example of a treatment we often do offer that is typically not recommended in wellness medspa functional medicine, consider statin therapy. Many functional medicine practitioners are skeptical of statins, often citing concerns like CoQ10 depletion or the body's need for cholesterol. These issues sound concerning at first, but on closer inspection, they prove to be unfounded, inaccurate, clinically insignificant, easily overcome, or far outweighed by the benefits of therapy. Statins are the most thoroughly studied intervention in medicine, and in people with elevated LDL particle counts, they substantially reduce the risk of heart attack, stroke, and cardiovascular death. Statins do have real potential downsides, such as a small chance of reversible muscle symptoms or a much smaller increase in diabetes risk, and we discuss the risks openly. But when your cardiovascular risk calls for lipid-lowering therapy, statins will be part of the conversation, and we’ll discuss your other options as well, including PCSK9 inhibitors, bempidoic acid, and more — but always in addition to, not as a replacement for, intensive lifestyle optimization.

    Dr. Abendroth is board-certified in functional medicine by the International Board of Functional Medicine and was trained by the Institute for Functional Medicine.

  • Medicine 3.0 is a term popularized by Peter Attia, MD to describe a modern, proactive approach to care that focuses on preserving function, preventing disease, and detecting early-stage disease long before symptoms appear. It emphasizes early risk management, continuous monitoring, using the best available testing technology, and implementing targeted interventions to optimize long-term health. Rather than reacting to illness, it uses data-driven insights, personalized strategies, and a focus on longevity and performance to help patients maintain peak physical and cognitive function over time.

    Medicine 3.0 is more of a medical philosophy than a distinct medical specialty, and while we practice our own version of Medicine 3.0, no board certifications or similar qualifications are currently available. All we can say is that Dr. Abendroth has listened to every episode of Dr. Peter Attia’s podcast, The Drive — that’s over 900 hours of Medicine 3.0-related content as of 2026, and has been inspired by podcast guests like Tom Dayspring, Alan Sniderman, Michael Davidson, and Ronald Krauss to pursue advanced education in lipidology to ensure he is doing everything he can to help his patients avoid the number one cause of death: cardiovascular disease.

  • Since the days of Hippocrates, medicine has been about not dying. Recently, though, longevity has become a buzzword, but it means different things to different people.

    To many healthcare providers, it seems to mean profiting from selling IV infusions or poorly studied peptide therapies not approved for human use, or spending trivial time in hyperbaric oxygen chambers or under infrared lights.

    To others, it means practicing Medicine 3.0 so patients reduce the risk of premature, avoidable death and increase their chances of a maximally long & vibrant healthspan. This means selecting personalized interventions with the strongest signal for potential benefit and a favorable risk/time/cost/reward profile.

    We believe in medical freedom and the right to experiment on yourself, but we also believe in being ethical medical providers and ensuring patients have the information and evidence they need to make smart decisions.

    For example, hyperbaric oxygen does have many uses, and we aren’t opposed to it as an idea, but in aging research it requires specific high-pressure, high-oxygen environments that most wellness HBOT tents are not capable of achieving, and it requires a substantial investment of time and money if you’re going to do it right. The Shamir healthy-aging protocol, for example, requires 90 minutes per day, 5 days per week, for 3 months. That’s 90 hours in a 2 ATM hard-sided medical chamber. The opportunity cost alone is staggering — what else could you do for your health for 90 minutes a day, 5 days a week, that might be a more effective use of your time? Not to mention the financial cost of such a protocol. We’re not saying don’t do it — we’re saying, understand what the evidence says, what it takes to do it right, and make a smart decision about how to use your time and money to advance your health goals.

    We’re here to help you with that.

Hormonal Therapy

  • Absolutely. Hormone therapy in men and women has many very real benefits, as well as some risks that need to be navigated and managed.

    While women are well known to undergo menopause, perimenopause is often less appreciated as a time when hormonal support can be life-changing. Old, largely debunked fears about hormone therapy persist to this day, resulting in the majority of women still going untreated and suffering the consequences, including reduced quality of life as well as bone demineralization, cognitive decline, increased risk of cardiovascular events, and more.

    Men also face an increasing frequency of hormone insufficiency and experience declining testosterone with age, sometimes called andropause. There are serious considerations to make when deciding on an optimal replacement strategy, and there is no one-size-fits-all approach.

    We are experienced experts in safe, effective hormone replacement therapy for both men and women, including testosterone, estrogen, and progesterone. While no credible certifying body exists for this part of medicine, we have undergone extensive training through A4M, IFM, the Menopause Society, and more. Melissa is an active member of the Menopause Society.

  • No. Pellets are a great way for providers and pellet manufacturers to make money, but not a great way to deliver hormones. They are invasive, non-adjustable between insertions, and carry a significantly higher risk of adverse effects ranging from scarring and extrusion to overdosing and infections. Overdosing is unfortunately common.

    So why are they so popular? Learning how to provide expert hormonal care is daunting for most medical professionals. Pellet manufacturers provide oversimplified, shallow “education and support” to providers looking to offer hormonal therapy, in exchange for a contract with those providers. This effectively creates a nationwide distribution network for their hormone pellets, with providers depending on selling those products for a living.

    Pellets offer a simple, lucrative, turnkey start to providing hormone therapy, which is why they are ubiquitous in med spas, sham longevity IV bars, and among providers who lack rigorous medical training in hormonal therapy.

  • Yes, we frequently prescribe low-dose physiologically normal testosterone for women to bring levels back to what a healthy woman should have. Like other hormones, levels fall with aging. Replacing it can improve or preserve muscle mass, cognition, mood, sexual function, and energy in appropriate patients.

  • No.

Weight loss

  • Yes. Most often, we prescribe tirzepatide for its dual GLP-1/GIP action, and we look forward to offering retatrutide as soon as it is available outside the black market.

    However, we are fans of going low and slow. We often start with doses below the normal prescription level. And to be clear, we do have concerns about them regarding long-term safety, muscle loss, rebound weight gain, and the exit strategy. But we recognize that obesity is a serious health problem that needs to be addressed without undue delay and with medical assistance when needed. With close monitoring of muscle and fat mass, and when combined with proper nutrition and a structured exercise program, drugs like tirzepatide can be life-changing and life-saving.

  • Outside of GLP-1s, no, we do not at this time. Most are stimulants or otherwise alter brain chemistry in ways we do not understand or believe are likely healthy. They are also all very much inferior to tirzepatide or semaglutide.

  • We treat each patient individually. As such, we don't have a standardized program or set protocol. We do not offer weight loss therapy outside of our clinic membership.

    All of our members have a health optimization plan from day one. Weight loss may be part of your health optimization plan, and GLP-1’s could be one strategy in that aspect of your plan.

Payment

  • We accept credit card, debit card, ACH, cash, and for most services, FSA and HSA cards. If using HSA or FSA funds, check with your plan administrator or accountant to verify eligibility.

  • When you pay your doctor directly, your doctor works for you. When an insurance company pays your doctor, your doctor works for the insurance company, even if it doesn’t feel like it.

    We steer clear of health insurance so we can offer you the time, diagnostics, and treatments you need for optimal health. We have a lot to say about health insurance, but we’ll save it for a blog post.

  • Due to unsustainably low reimbursement from Medicare, we must limit the size of our Medicare patient panel. Contact us if you wish to be placed on our Medicare waitlist.

    Due to federal regulations, we must bill Medicare for any service it covers. Doctors are not allowed to charge the patient anything extra for it. We cannot accept payment from a Medicare patient for services covered by Medicare.

    We do not accept Medicaid.