Question

ldentify the conditions/disorders that can cause each of the symptoms below. Provide the following for each symptom identifying the best method for collecting the assessment information (asking the patient, observation, lab work, ....) is a sign or symptom, or both - what are the normal values or how does it present clinically - are there any specific diseases that can be linked to the abnormal values - what are some possible treatments or therapies options, 1. Chest pain 2. Cough 3. Dizziness and Fainting (Syncope) 4. Swelling of the Ankles 5. Fever 6. Altered Mental Status 7. Hemoptysis 8. Hematemesis 9. Shortness of Breath (Dyspnea) 10. Snoring 11. Sputum Production

Answer 1

A symptom is the subjective evidence of the disease . Anxiety, low back pain, and fatigue are all symptoms; only the patient can perceive them.

1. Chest pain - is a subjective symptom which the patient can only perceive ,for the assessment purpose we can ask the patient about the location , how intense it is by using pain scale etc . Patient present it clinically as heartburn or severe pain inbetween the chest and might also complain as radiating to other places. Diseases which are associated with chest pain are Myocardial Infarction ,Angina, GERD, cough etc. Treatment option depends on the cause like for MI we treat it with nitrates,oxygen administration, semi fowlers position , morphine thrombolytics etc, for GERD we treat it with antacids, analgesics, proton pump inhibitors etc.

2. Cough - is a subjective symptom and sign,for the assessment purpose we can ask the patient about how severe is the cough , is it dry or wet and productive , is there any bleeding along with it . Patient present it by complaining of cough which is further described by the patient as having sputum or not , along with chest pain or not .Diseases which are associated with it are asthma , COPD, pneumonia etc .Treatment options is to treat the causative agent like for example for treating pneumonia use of antibiotics , steam inhalation ,etc

3. Dizziness and Fainting - is a subjective symptom percieved by the patient . Patient presents it as he or she feels dizziness after doing lot of work or when he or she suddenly gets up from the bed etc. Diseases which are associated with it Hypotension , Shock etc . Treatment option is to treat the cause like for shock giving IV fluids, providing Trendelenburg position etc.

4. Swelling of the ankles - is a objective symptom and sign also. Patient present it by complaining swelling in the legs . Diseases associated with it are Renal disease, Cardiac failure .etc Treatment option is to treat the cause like for renal disease treating it antihypertensives , limiting fluid intake ,monitoring intake and output , hemodialysis , weight monitoring daily etc .