A comprehensive clinical examination is the basis for selecting further diagnostic steps:
- General physical examination – including blood pressure, pulse, body weight, height; furthermore:
- Inspection (viewing).
- Skin and mucous membranes
- Abdomen (abdomen)
- Shape of the abdomen?
- Skin color? Skin texture?
- Efflorescences (skin changes)?
- Pulsations? Bowel movements?
- Visible vessels?
- Scars? Hernias (fractures)?
- Auscultation (listening) of the heart [tachycardia (heartbeat too fast: > 100 beats per minute), which occurs mainly after eating or angina pectoris attacks (chest tightness)] [due todifferential diagnoses: coronary artery disease (CAD); myocardial infarction (heart attack)]
- Auscultation of the lungs
- Examination of the abdomen (belly)
- Percussion (tapping) of the abdomen
- Meteorism (flatulence): hypersonoric tapping sound.
- Attenuation of tapping sound due to enlarged liver or spleen, tumor, urinary retention?
- Palpation (palpation) of the abdomen (abdomen) (pressure pain?, knocking pain?, coughing pain?, defensive tension?, hernial orifices?, kidney bearing knocking pain?)[due topossible sequelae:
- Percussion (tapping) of the abdomen
- Inspection (viewing).
- If necessary, cancer screening [due topossible cause: tumors in the abdomen][due todifferential diagnoses:
- Cardiac carcinoma (gastric inlet carcinoma).
- Esophageal carcinoma (cancer of the esophagus)
- Tumors of the mediastinum (middle pleural space)]
Square brackets [ ] indicate possible pathologic (pathological) physical findings.