skin, hair, nails Flashcards
anatomy of the skin
epidermis, dermis, subcutaneous
types of hair
vellus, terminal
what is hair made of?
keratin, dead cells
nails
hard plate of keratin, protects fingers and toes, angle of nail bed should be 160 degrees
ROS, health history questions
past history of skin disease? excessive dryness? rash or lesions? change in nails? etc.
inspection of skin
general pigmentation of skin, expected v. unexpected findings
pallor
pale or grey or yellow brown, caused by anemia or circulatory issues
erythema
may appear red or purple, caused by inflammation
cyanosis
blue or purple undertones, caused by lack of oxygen
jaundice
yellowish skin, caused by bilirubin
petechia
small round reddish dots, caused by bleeding under skin
palpation of skin
temperature, moisture, texture, edema, turgor
turgor
pinch large fold of skin below clavicle, should return promptly when released, reflects elasticity and hydration
edema
fluid in the extremities, push with your thumb, note how long it stays (1-4 scale)
expected skin findings
skin is smooth, intact, uniformly dry, warm, instant return with skin turgor
expected variations of skin
acne, wrinkles, scars, older people may have more elastic skin
unexpected findings of skin
velvet skin, roughness or flaky, diaphoresis, skin lesions, hypothermia, hyperthermia, skin tenting, edema
vitiligo
acquired skin condition that is loss of pigment in skin
primary skin lesions
macules, papules, patches, plaques, nodules, wheals, tumors, urticaria, vesicles, cysts, bullas, pustules
macules
solely a color change, flat, less than 1 cm
papules
felt and caused by superficial thickening of the epidermis
patches
macules that are larger than 1 cm
plaques
papules coalescing to form surface elevation wider than 1 cm
nodules
solid, elevated, hard or soft, greater than 1 cm that may extend deeper into dermis than papule