Hepatitis C: Examination

A comprehensive clinical examination is the basis for selecting further diagnostic steps:

  • General physical examination – including blood pressure, pulse, body weight, height; further:
    • Inspection (viewing).
      • Skin, mucous membranes, and sclerae (white part of the eye) [jaundice (jaundice)?, liver skin signs such as patent tongue, palmar erythema (redness of the palm), and spider naevi (small red vascular dilatations on the skin)?]
      • Abdomen (abdomen)
        • Shape of the abdomen?
        • Skin color? Skin texture?
        • Efflorescences (skin changes)?
        • Pulsations? Bowel movements?
        • Visible vessels?
        • Scars? Hernias (fractures)?
    • Abdominal (stomach) examination [hepatosplenomegaly (liver enlargement)?]
      • Percussion (tapping) of the abdomen.
        • Meteorism (flatulence): hypersonoric tapping sound.
        • Attenuation of tapping sound due to enlarged liver or spleen, tumor, urinary retention?
        • Hepatomegaly (liver enlargement) and splenomegaly (spleen enlargement): estimate liver and spleen size.
      • Palpation (palpation) of the abdomen (abdomen) (tenderness?, knocking pain?, coughing pain?, defensive tension?, hernial orifices?, kidney bearing knocking pain?).

Square brackets [ ] indicate possible pathological (pathological) physical findings.