Sign names Flashcards
De Musset’s sign
Head bob associated with Aortic regurgitation
AR due to:
- Dilation of aortic root (Marfan’s)
- Rheumatic fever
- Bicuspid aortic valve
- Infective endocarditis
Traube’s sign
Pistol shot systolic sound over femoral artery due to aortic regurgitation
Other AR physical signs:
- Water hammer pulse; bisferiens pulse
- Wide pulse pressure
- Inferolaterally displaced PMI (indicates volume overload)
Quickne Pulse
Pulsation in fingertips (alters red and white) due to aortic regurgitation
Symptoms of AR:
- Left-sided heart failure = dyspnea on exertion, orthopnea, PND
- Palpitations, chest pain, pounding in chest
Mueller sign
Uvula bobbing due to AR–> aortic insufficiency
Auscultation of AR:
- Blowing, diastolic, heard at right 2nd intercostal space or Erb’s point
- Soft S1, tambour S2 (if due to dilation of aortic root)
- May have murmur of functional mitral stenosis (Austin Flint)
- May have systolic ejection sound (indicates severe insufficiency)
Duroziez sign
Systolic and diastolic murmurs over femoral artery seen in AR
Paradoxical splitting
Spilling of S2 heart sounds during expiration (vs normal inspiration)
- P2 comes BEFORE A2 (normally A2 before P2)
Due to:
- Delayed A2 closure:
- Left BBB (most common cause)
- Impedence to L ventricular emptying (AS)
- LV dysfunction - Early P2 closure:
- Tricuspid regurgitation
- R atrial myxoma
Fixed splitting
Timing between A2 and P2 fixed
Due to: Atrial septal defect (ASD)
- Can hear pseudo-fixed splitting in young, healthy pts, but it disappears when lay down & put legs up, decreasing venous return to RV
- Many differential dxs: 1.-Late systolic click OR 2.-Early diastolic extra sounds (pericardial knock, tumor plop, opening snap)
Gallavardin Phenomenon
Aortic stenosis causing mitral regurgitation sound (systolic) at Apex
Austin-Flint murmur
Aortic regurgitation causing sound of mitral stenosis (diastolic sound) at apex
Valsalva maneuver
“Bearing down”- decreases venous return to heart
- Enhancing murmur of mitral valve prolapse, HOCM
S3
Volume overloaded state
- Ventricular systolic dysfunction (VSD, PDA)
- Increased “preload” (MR)
Right-sided S3= due to tricuspid regurgitation
- Best heard on inspiration
Left-sided S3= due to MR
- Best heard on exhalation
S4
Pressure overloaded state
- Ventricular diastolic dysfuntion (LVH)
- HTN, AS, CAD
Rivero/Carvallo maneuver
Murmur intensifies on INSPIRATION= right-sided heart defect
- Inspiration–> negative pressure in lungs–> increased flow thru R side of heart
- Example: pulmonary HTN–> increases with inspiration
vs Louder on expiration= left-sided heart problem
- Blood pushed out of lungs in L side of heart–> increased flow through left side
Hand grip maneuver
Increases afterload, thus enhancing any defects due to backward flow:
- AR
- MR
- VSD
Decreases intensity of murmurs due to obstructed flow
- AS
- HOCM
Pulsus bisferiens
Palpable double pulse at radial artery
- Due to AR
Pulsus parvus et tardus
Slow, weak pulse seen in Aortic Stenosis
- Brachio-radial delay seen
Pulsus alternans
Alternation of strong and weak beats due to Left ventricular failure
Pulsus paradoxus
Normal: BP decreases on inspiration by < 10 mm Hg
Paradox: decrease of > 10 mm Hg on inspiration due to:
- Cardiac tamponade
- Pericarditis
- COPD
Triple ripple
Seen in HOCM: double or triple apical impulse
- Brisk bifid pulse
Eisenmegner’s syndrome
Pulmonary HTN, reversal of PDA
- Cyanosis + clubbing of fingers
Paget’s disease of breast
Erythematous, scaly rash under areola
- Sign of ductal carcinoma
Troisier’s node
= Virchow’s node
- Hard lymphatic node at L supraclavicular fossa
- Think GI cancer (BAD)
Sister Mary Joseph’s sign
Enlarged, hardened nodules around umbilicus
- Malignancy in abdomen/pelvis
Buerger’s test
Raise leg, look for pallor before 60 seconds at 30 degrees
- Normally leg should not pale when held up for 60 seconds at 90 degrees
- Sign of Peripheral arterial disease
Trendelenburg test
Testing for venous insufficiency
- Tourniquet superficial incompetent vein (varicose vein) while supine
- Stand and observe to see if filling from above or below after < 30 sec
- Above= incompetent valves above site
- Below= distal perforating veins (from deep veins) have incompetency
Cheyne-Stokes Respiration
Cyclic pattern of progressively deeper (maybe faster) breathing followed by a gradual decrease and an apnea
Causes: heart failure; damage to respiratory center of the brain
Trepopnea
“Twisted respiration”
- Have to be on one side to breath better
- Inability to lie supine or prone, preference for lateral decubitus
- Lung is squashed by massive effusion
- Lie down on good lung side to ensure perfusion
- UNLESS effusion “spills”, hemoptysis, pneumonia, pneumothorax
Abdominal paradox
Abdomen sucking in while patient inhales= sign of respiratory distress
Respiratory alternans= paradoxical breathing alternating with normal breathing
Respiratory tirage
Inspiratory retraction of suprasternal and supraclavicular fossa and intercostal spaces
Hoover’s sign
Diaphragm flattened by hyperinflated lungs–> pulls inward with inspiration
- 90% specific for COPD
- Also seen in Ricket’s (flattened rib slope
Lung tripod
Leaning up, sitting forward on knees, pursed lips (Emphysematous breathing)
- Can see patch on thighs
Laryngeal height
Distance between adam’s apple and suprasternal notch
- Should be > 4 cm
- Emphysema/smoking–> decreased laryngeal height
Kussmaul’s respiration
Rapid and deep (hypernea/ hyperventilation- increased rate and tidal volume) - Differs from hyperventilation of cardiac/respiratory disorders= shallow (less effective) MAKEUPL - Methanol - Aspirin - Ketones - Ethylene glycol - Uremia - Paraldehyde - Lactic acidosis
Hypertrophic osteoarthropathy
Systemic disorder of bones, joints, soft tissue; associated with intrathoracic neoplasm (bronchogenic)
- Also called Hypertrophic pulmonary osteoarthropathy
- Painful, tender periosteal bone proliferation usually associated with clubbing
- Seen in long bones of extremities: pre-tibial aches (shining, thickened warm skin)
Diagnosis: imaging
Treatment: resection
*Can also occur in non-neoplastic pulmonary disorders (CF, bronchiectasia, empyema, lung abscesses)
Atelectasis
Obstructive: Excessive secretion due to: - asthma - chronic bronchitis Foreign body aspiration Blood Bronchial neoplasms
Compressive:
Expansion of the pleural space
- By fluid: effusion (CHF, neoplasms), blood (rupture of aneurysm)
- By air: pneumothorax
Patchy:
Loss of surfactant due to:
- neonatal RDS
- adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS)
Reduced breath sound intensity
Airflow obstruction
- COPD: reduced transmission of sound (not production)
- fever and localized sound= pneumonia with effusion
- Confirm obstruction with FETo maneuver
Pleural effusion breath sounds
- Vesicular on top
- Bronchial in middle
- Absent on bottom
Clubbing
Presentation:
Shunting of blood from finger tips
- does NOT occur in emphysema
- Seen in chronic bronchitis, tetralogy of Fallot, endocarditis
- 4/5 patients with clubbing–> underlying respiratory disorder (inflammatory or neoplastic)
Signs:
Floating nails (ballottability of nail bed)
Abnormal phalangeal depth ratio
Lovibond angle disappears (at cuticle)
- Differentiate from severe nail curvature= illness
* Malignancy can increase periosteum–> tenderness in shins, clubbing (pulmonary hyperperiostrophy)
Causes: SHUNT Intrathoracic: - AV malformations (Osler-Weber-Rendu) - Lung cancers - Mesothelioma - Bronchial problems - Cystic fibrosis Cardiovascular - Congenital cyanotic heart disease - Subacute bacterial endocarditis - Infected aortic bypass graft Hepatic/GI: - Cirrhosis - IBD - GI cancer *10% benign (AAs, idiopathic, pregnancy)
Loud breath sounds in neck
Inspiratory – stridor
Expiratory – vocal cord dysfunction
Bradypnea
Slow breathing (< 8 bpm) due to:
- hypothyroidism
- CNS depression
- Narcotics/sedatives
Toe clubbing
Pulmonary hypertension (due to PDA)
- Fingers normal, pink
- Toes bluer, clubbed
- “Half a smurf”
Platypnea
Breathing “flat” due to orthodeoxia when upright
- Left to Right to Left shunt (often ASD with pulmonary hypertension)
- Cirrhotics (Hepato-pulmonary syndrome)
- Bi-basilar processes (embolisms, pneumonia, pleural effusion
Hepato-pulmonary syndrome
Cirrhosis–> AV fistulas–> standing feeds fistulas–> hypoxia
Lying down drains AV fistulas–> normoxic
** additionally, liver produces NO–> pulmonary vessel dilation
Hypopnea
Shallow respirations due to:
- Impeding respiratory failure
- Obesity- Hypoventilation (Pickwickian syndrome)
vs Apnea= absence of breathing (> 10 seconds)
Murphy’s sign
Painful right upper quadrant, no nodules= cholecystitis
4Fs= fat, female, forty, female
- The encounter between the examiner’s fingertips and the inflamed edge of the gallbladder causes pain and a reflex arrest in inspiration.
Signs of Cholecystitis
Murphy’s sign
- Area of hypersensitivity over the right costophrenic angle (Boas’ sign) – sensitivity only 7%.
- At times they may also exhibit an audible rub over the edge of the gallbladder.
- They rarely have a palpable and tender right upper quadrant mass, (see Courvoisier’s law).
- Courvoisier’s law= Jaundice in the setting of a painless, enlarged gallbladder indicates malignancy of the head of the pancreas or the sphincter of Oddi (NOT gallstones)
Shifting dullness maneuver
Test used to diagnose Ascites:
- Gravity- dependent shift
- Sensitive test: 500-1000 mL of fluid (can rule out presence of GROSS ascites)
- 50% specificity: confounder= accumulation of fluid in patients with diarrhea
Bulging flanks
Weight of intra-abdominal fluid (and effect of gravity on fluid) causing flanks to push outward while supine
- Sensitive but not specific
Flank dullness test
Percussing abdomen radiating out from umbilicus: air filled bowels vs dullness from ascites
- Sensitive but not specific
Fluid wave maneuver
Place one hand on flanks and tap on opposite flank. Have patient place ulnar hand surface vertically over umbilicus
- Positive test= fluid wave emanating to contralateral side
- Specific, not sensitive
Asterixis
“Liver flap”
- Common finding of hepatic encephalopathy
- Hands start flapping while outstretched
Spider telangectasias
Small capillary rupture- sign of liver failure
Palmar erythema
Sign of liver failure
Caput medusa
Portal hypertension causing dilatation of veins around umbilicus
Palpable spleen
Hemolytic anemia
Portal HTN, cirrhosis, obstruction
Foeter hepaticus
distinctive breath smell in liver failure (eggs)
Guarding
Diffuse or localized tension of abdominal wall
- Involuntary (rigidity)
- Voluntary= elicited by gentle or deep pressure
- Localized rigidity= specific indicator of peritonitis- see absence of respiratory motion in select parts of abdominal wall
Carnett’s sign
Induced guarding= patient feels less pain when they tense abdominal wall (intrabdominal problem). If they feel more, this is abdominal wall problem
Abdominal wall tenderness (AWT)/ modified Carnett’s
Patient sits forward- at midway the physician increases pressure on tender spot. If tenderness increases–> positive abdominal wall tenderness. If tenderness decreases–> negative test
- It should not be used in children or elderly patients (because of the risk of misinterpretation).
- It is useless and inhumane in patients with diffuse abdominal pain who already have rigidity.
- It is possibly dangerous in patients with an intra-abdominal abscess (straining and increased intra-abdominal pressure may cause the abscess to burst).
Blumberg’s sign
Rebound tenderness:
Severe pain of abdominal wall indirectly elicited by sudden release of hand pressure
- Palpate area of tenderness gently, then deeper and release
- OR, light indirect percussion over area of pain
Referred rebound tenderness
Rebound testing on side opposite to where pain reported.
ex: Rovsing’s sign
Abdominal hyperesthesia
Acute pain in abdomen due to any process in or on abdomen (organs, herpes zoster, etc)
Closed eye sign
Closed eyes + beatific smile= nonspecific abdominal pain