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; furthermore:
- Inspection (viewing).
- Skin [due topossible symptoms:
- Erythema anulare rheumaticum marginatum (in circa 10%) – truncal circular (segmental), bluish to pale red skin redness.
- Erythema nodosum (nodular erythema), localization: both lower leg extensor sides, at the knee and ankle joints; less frequently on the arms or buttocks.
- Rheumatoid nodules (in circa 30%) – rheumatoid subcutaneous nodules.
- Mucous membranes and sclerae (white part of the eye).
- Skin [due topossible symptoms:
- Inspection and palpation (palpation) of the joints [due topossible manifestations: reactive arthritis; see especially large joints: knee joint, ankle joint; later also participation.
- Auscultation (listening) of the heart [due topossible manifestations: Endocarditis (endocarditis), myocarditis (inflammation of the heart muscle), pericarditis (pericardial inflammation)]
- Inspection (viewing).
Square brackets [ ] indicate possible pathologic (pathological) physical findings.
