Head and Neck History Taking Flashcards
List some of the most common symptoms in presenting complaint of an ENT patient.
Sore throat
Dysphonia- hoarseness
Dysphagia
Odynophagia
Mouth/throat ulcer
Neck lump
In which issues is family history particularly important?
Thyroid issues
Name the three major salivary glands
Parotid
Sublingual
Submandibular
Auscultation is rare in head and neck examination but when might this be done?
Thyroid bruits
Carotid bruits
In which condition would there be a thyroid bruits?
Grave’s thyroiditis
In which condition would there be a carotid bruits?
Carotid stenosis
What happens if you look in someone’s mouth and they have two uvula?
Don’t panic! Strange to see but no clinical significance.
But gal, this could be something they throw in an OSCE to see if you notice ig so be aware!
What is used in examination of the throat?
Flexible or rigid laryngoscope
What colour are normal vocal cords?
Pearly white
If a patient presents with a lump in their neck, which investigation will be carried out?
FNAC
Fine needle aspirate cytology
Which scan is useful for seeing areas of increased metabolic activity?
PET scan
->areas of increased metabolic activity may be tumours as require more blood and nutrients to grow.
Which questions will need to be asked if a patient presents with a lump in the neck?
How long has it been there?
Site?
Fluctuates in size?
Sore?
Associated head and neck symptoms.
Recent travel?
Upon examination of a neck lump, what should be checked?
Seven S’s
Site
Size
Shape
Soft or hard?
Sore
Skin over the lump
Stuck or fixed to any adjacent structures?
Describe the features of a reactive lymph node.
Oval
Soft
Smooth
Mobile
Tender
If a child has reactive lymph nodes, what may the child have?
Ear infection
Posterior nasal infection
What may salivary gland swellings be related to?
Tumours
Inflammation
What other problems can occur within the salivary glands?
Salivary stones
In someone with salivary stones, when will their salivary glands swell?
In relation to meals- as soon as they try to salivate, the gland will swell up