A comprehensive clinical examination is the basis for selecting further diagnostic steps:
- General physical examination – including blood pressure, pulse, body temperature, body weight, body height.
- Gynecological examination
- Inspection of the mammae (breasts), right and left; the nipple (nipple), right and left, and the skin [rubor (redness) of the breast?; tumor (swelling) of the breast?; purulent nipple secretion? ; classic form of mastitis is Mondor’s disease – in this case, a superficial thrombophlebitis/acute thrombosis and inflammation of superficial veins with up to 30 cm long coarse, sometimes painful subcutaneous strands, which may thereby also exceed the submammary fold (“underbust fold”)].
- Palpation of the mammae, the two supraclavicular pits (upper clavicle pits) and axillae (axillae) [calor (overheating) of the breast?; tumor (swelling) of the breast?; dolor (painfulness) of the breast?; axillary lymphadenopathy (lymph node enlargement), “concerning the axilla (axilla)”?]
Square brackets [ ] indicate possible pathologic (pathological) physical findings.
