DEFINE WRITEDOWN PROFESSIONAL

This will often be combined with other signs to reach a diagnosis. High blood pressure: This can indicate a cardiovascular problem, an adverse reaction to medication, an allergy, or many other possible conditions or diseases.Some examples of signs that can be linked to a disease by a clinician:

DEFINE WRITEDOWN PROFESSIONAL

However, in the hands of a medical professional that knows how this sign relates to the rest of the body, the same sign can be the key to treating an underlying medical problem. Sometimes, a patient may not notice a sign, and it may not seem relevant. They can often be measured, and this measurement can be central to diagnosing a medical problem. For example, untreated urinary tract infections (UTIs) may cause premature births.Ī medical sign is a physical response linked medical fact or characteristic that is detected by a physician, nurse, or medical device during the examination of a patient. The infection can still be transmitted to other people during the incubation period, or the period during which the infectious agent takes hold of the body.Īnother danger of subclinical infections is that they can cause complications unrelated to the infection itself. These are known as subclinical infections, and they can be contagious despite not causing noticeable symptoms in the person carrying the infection. Many types of infection do not show symptoms. These are known as asymptomatic conditions, and even though the idea of symptoms is often linked to discomfort or abnormal function, a condition without symptoms can be deadly. For example, a person can have high blood pressure for years without knowing, and some cancers have no symptoms until the later, more aggressive stages.

For instance, symptoms of depression may not occur for years at a time but can then return.

Relapsing symptoms: These are symptoms that have occurred in the past, resolved, and then returned.

Chronic symptoms are often seen in ongoing conditions, such as diabetes, asthma, and cancer.

Chronic symptoms: These are long-lasting or recurrent symptoms.

For examples, symptoms of the common cold may occur for several days and then resolve without treatment.

Remitting symptoms: When symptoms improve or resolve completely, they are known as remitting symptoms.

By the modern definition, these would have been symptoms but are now classed as signs. It was during this period in modern medical history that the terms “sign” and “symptom” developed separate meanings, as doctors and patients no longer needed to work together as closely to identify medical issues.ĭoctors can now see signs they would previously have relied upon patients to describe.

Sphygmomanometer: This is a device that fits around the arm and measures blood pressure.ĭuring the 20th century, hundreds of new devices and techniques were created to evaluate signs.

X-ray imaging: This can show damage to the bones.

Ophthalmoscope: An eye specialist may use this to examine the inside of the eye.

Spirometer: This helps to measure lung function.

Stethoscope: A doctor can use this to listen to the sounds of the heart and lungs.

A range of devices is now available to help doctors identify and analyze signs that even the patient may not have recognized.

Since the 1800s, medical science has come on leaps and bounds in helping physicians clearly identify signs. Share on Pinterest Advancing technology has put more power in the hands of clinicians when it comes to identifying diseases.

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