A physical examination is a routine test your primary care provider (PCP) performs to check your overall health. A PCP may be a doctor, a nurse practitioner, or a physician assistant. The exam is also known as a wellness check
2. Physical examination
•Physical examination is defined as a complete
assessment of a patient’s physical and mental
status.
•A physical assessment is the systematic
collection of objective information that is
directly observed or is elicited through
examination techniques
3. Indication of physical examination
• On admission
• On discharge
• On follow up
• Health camps
• Before and after diagnostic and therapeutic
procedure.
6. GENERAL INSPECTION OF A CLIENT
FOCUSES ON
• Overall appearance of health or illness
• Signs of distress
• Facial expression and mood
• Body size
• Grooming and personal hygiene
8. PRINCIPLES OF PALPATION
• Examiner should have short fingernails.
• Examiner should warm your hands prior to placing
them on the patient.
• Encourage the patient to continue to breathe
normally throughout the palpation.
• If pain is experienced during the palpation.
discontinue the palpation immediately.
• Inform the patient where, when, and how the
touch will occur, especially when the patient
cannot see what examiner is doing.
15. FOUR CHARACTERISTICS OF SOUND
• 1.Pitch (ranging from high and low):frequency or
number of oscillations generated per second by
vibrating object
• 2. Loudness (ranging from soft to loud): amplitude
of sound
• 3. Quality (gurgling or swishing)
• 4. Duration (short, medium or long)
36. ARTICLES REQUIRED
• Screen to provide privacy
• Bowl for antiseptic lotion
• Kidney tray and paper bag
• Weighing machine and height scale
• Patient gown
37. ARTICLES REQUIRED
• Bath blanket to cover the patient
• Draw sheet to cover patient’s chest
• Square drum containing test tube,
gauze piece, cotton swab, specimen
bottle, swabsticks
• Gloves
• lubricant
38. ARTICLES REQUIRED
• Torch
• Ophthalmoscope
• Snellen’s chart
• Book for colour blindness
• Pen
• Flash card
• Autoscope with speculum of different sizes
• Percussion Hammer
• Tuning fork
42. ARTICLES FOR NEUROLOGICAL
EXAMINATION
•Tongue depressor
•2 test tubes one with hot water and other
with cold water
•Safety pins
•Sharp object like key
•Reading material to assess eyes and
language of person
•Knee harmer
57. ASSESSING NAILS
• Shape; convex
• Angle : between nail and its base is 160
degrees
• Texture: smooth, nail base should be firm and
non tender
• Color: pinkish nail bed with translucent white
tips
• Capillary refill
75. INSPECT THE MOUTH PHARYNX
AND NECK
•LIPS: lesions ,pallor (anemia),
cyanosis(respiratory cardiovascular problems),
cherry colored
•BUCCAL MUCOSA , GUMS AND TEETH: teeth
look for alignment , dental caries.buccal mucosa
is a good site to visualize jaundice and
pallor.leukoplakia (thick white patches ) is a
precancerous lesion.
•TONGUE
•FLOOR OF MOUTH
•PHARYNX:
76. ABNORMAL FINDINGS
• pallor, cyanosis or redness
• lesions, swollen lips red tonsils, swollen red
bleeding gums,
• white coating of tongue fissured tongue from
dehydration.
• bright red tongue seen in deficiency of iron
b12 or niacin,
• black tongue
80. ASSESS THE THORAX AND LUNGS
• INSPECT THE THORAX
• Abnormal findings :increase in chest size and
contour , abnormal breathing pattern with the
use of accessory muscles, unequal chest
expansion, and abnormal breath sounds,
barrel chest, pigeon chest
83. AUSCULATE BREATH SOUND
• Bronchial sounds heard over the trachea are high –
pitched, harsh sounds with expiration longer than
inspiration .
• Bronchovesicular sounds: heard over the main
stem bronchus and is moderate (blowing) sound
with inspiration equal to expiration.
• Vesicular sounds are soft , low pitched and heard
best in base of lungs during inspiration longer than
expiration.