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) of the skin and mucous membranes.
- Auscultation (listening) of the heart
- Auscultation of the lungs
- Palpation (palpation) of the abdomen (abdomen), etc.
- Neurological examination [due todifferential diagnoses:
- Early childhood autism
- Minor giftedness]
- Psychiatric examination[due topossible causes:
- Anxiety disorders
- Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder
- Depression
- Eating disorders such as bulimia nervosa
- Personality disorders
- Social behavior disorders
- Tics]
[due todifferential diagnoses:
- Anxiety disorders
- Depression
- Eating disorders
- Hypochondria (excessive concern about one’s own health)
- Kleptomania (addiction to stealing)
- Paraphilias (sexual deviance) – mental disorders that manifest as marked and recurrent sexually arousing fantasies, urges, sexual needs, or behaviors that deviate from the empirical “norm” and involve inanimate objects, pain, humiliation, or non-consenting persons such as children
- Personality disorders
- Schizophrenia
- Sleep disorders
- Gender identity disorders
- Sexual preference disorders
- Addictive disorders such as alcohol or drug abuse.
- Tic disorder]
[due topossible sequelae:
- Addictions, especially to medications (sleeping pills).
- Alcohol abuse (alcohol dependence)
- Depression
- Loss of control
- Social withdrawal]
- Health Check
Square brackets [ ] indicate possible pathological (pathological) physical findings.