Inspection as a Clinical Skill Flashcards
____________ meaning
the judging of one’s nature, is the art of judging
character from the features of the face
Physiognomy, from the Greek physiognomonia,
Thickening of the subcutaneous
tissues may be seen in ____, ______ and ____
chronic alcoholism, acromegaly
and myxoedema
The enlarged characteristic face is due to a large supraorbital ridge that causes frontal bossing, a broad nose and a prominent broad and square lower jaw.
Other
features include an enlarged tongue and soft tissue
swelling of the nose, lips and ears
Acromegalic
Due to mouth breathing in children: a narrow nose/
nares, a high-arched palate (the ‘Gothic’ palate),
prominent incisor teeth, undershot jaw with a
perpetually open mouth and ‘stupid’ expression
Adenoidal
plethoric face, thickened ‘greasy’ skin, telangiectasia, suffused conjunctivae and rosacea.
Alcoholic (due to chronic use)
Other features may include rhinophyma,
parotid swelling and characteristic changes to the lips
and corners of the mouth
Alcoholic (due to chronic use)
The bird-like features—beaking of the nose,
limitation of mouth opening, puckering or furrowing
of the lips and a fixed facial expression—are due to
binding down of facial skin
Bird-like (systemic sclerosis: CREST
syndrome)
Other features of CREST include
_______ and ____
telangiectasia on the face and hands
There is bossing of the skull, hypertrophy of the
maxillae (which tends to expose the upper teeth),
prominent malar eminences and depression of the bridge of the nose
Chipmunk (thalassaemia major)
The major haemoglobinopathies
cause _______ of the skull and facial bones because
of an increase in the bone marrow cavity.
hyperplasia
The patient with _______ has a pale face with cold
clammy skin, sunken eyes, hollow cheeks and a
forlorn, apathetic look (similar to the Hippocratic
facies
cholera
The face has a typical ‘moon shape’, plethora, hirsutism
(more obvious in women), acne
Cushingoid
This describes the deathly, mask-like features of advanced
peritonitis—sunken eyes; ‘gaunt’ face; ‘collapsed’
temples; dry, crusty lips; and clammy forehead
Hippocratic
The typical tall stature, arachnodactyly and chest
deformities, combined with the facial features of a
subluxation of the lens of the eye and high-arched
palate, help to pinpoint the diagnosis
Marfanoid (Marfan syndrome)
This is typically shown in flushed or rosy cheeks with
a bluish tinge due to dilatation of the malar capillaries.
It is associated with pulmonary hypertension.
Mitral (mitral valve disease, especially
mitral stenosis)
The facial features include a flat profile, with crowded
features, a round head, dysplastic lowset ears,
protruding tongue, mongoloid slant of the eyes with
epicanthic folds, mouth hanging open
Mongoloid (Down syndrome)
peripheral silver iris spots in pts with DS
Brushfield’s spots
Facial characteristics include an expressionless,
‘tired’-looking face with bilateral ptosis.
Myopathic (myopathy/myasthenia gravis)
Typical features include frontal baldness,
expressionless triangular facies, partial ptosis,
cataracts and temporal muscle atrophy
Myotonic (dystrophia myotonia)
The face usually has an apathetic look and is ‘puffy’
with possible periorbital oedema
Myxoedemic (hypothyroidism)
In pts with Myxedema coma:
The skin (not the sclera)
may appear yellow (due to ______) and is
generally dry and coarse
hypercarotenaemia
Type of speech in pts with myxedema coma:
The tongue is usually
enlarged and the patient speaks with a ‘thickened’,
croaking, slow speech
The main feature is skull enlargement, notably of the
frontal and parietal areas (the head circumference is
usually greater than 55 cm, which is abnormal)—the ‘hat
doesn’t fit any more’ hallmark.
Pagetic (Paget disease)