Medical Diagnosis
Medical Diagnosis - Related Videos
07:34
FISH for Pre-implantation Genetic Diagnosis
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Cited by 17 •
2011
This article describes the selection of suitable probes for single-cell FISH, spreading techniques for blastomere nuclei, and in situ hybridization and signal scoring, applied to pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) in a clinical setting.
06:59
A Novel Approach for the Administration of Medications and Fluids in Emergency Scenarios and Settings
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Cited by 5 •
2016
This study presents a novel device that offers an easy route to quickly provide medications and fluids in patients with limited or difficult IV access. This small-diameter device is placed in the distal third of the rectum, allowing for ongoing medication and fluids administration.
01:23
Inhaled Medications
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2025
Inhaled medications are crucial for managing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma. They are essential for effective treatment and control, ensuring optimal respiratory health and well-being. Inhaled medication delivers drugs directly to the lungs, providing a rapid onset of action and reducing systemic side effects compared to oral or injectable medications. Three primary types of inhalation devices are used to administer these medications: nebulizers, metered-dose inhalers...
08:16
Utility of Dissociated Intrinsic Hand Muscle Atrophy in the Diagnosis of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
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Cited by 12 •
2014
Dissociated atrophy of intrinsic hand muscles, termed the split hand, appears to be a specific feature of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Consequently, a novel neurodiagnostic test, termed the split hand index, was developed to quantify the clinical phenomenon of the split hand, which differentiated ALS from mimic disorders.
01:22
Nursing Diagnosis
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2023
Following assessment, a nursing diagnosis is the next step in the nursing process. It begins after the nurse has collected and recorded the patient data. The purpose of diagnosing is to identify how the client responds to actual or potential health processes, identify factors that bestow or that cause health problems, the etiologies, and identify resources or strengths the individual, group, or community can draw on to prevent or resolve problems. The nursing diagnosis focuses on evidence-based...
FAQs
A differential diagnosis organizes several plausible explanations for a patient’s condition instead of treating the first suspected cause as certain. Clinicians compare symptoms, medical history, physical findings, and characteristic patterns across these possibilities. This reasoning helps identify which explanations fit the available evidence, guides targeted testing, and supports confirmation or exclusion of competing causes.
Each source of clinical evidence contributes a different perspective on the patient’s condition. Symptoms describe the person’s experience, medical history provides relevant background, and physical findings supply observations from examination. Considering them together allows clinicians to refine diagnostic possibilities before interpreting test results, reducing reliance on any single type of evidence.
These methods provide different forms of evidence for evaluating suspected conditions. Laboratory analyses assess measurable biological findings, imaging produces information about internal structures or abnormalities, physiological measurements evaluate body function, and pathology examines tissue-related findings. Clinicians use the results to support, confirm, or exclude possible causes identified during diagnostic reasoning.
When symptoms or findings are already present, clinicians use diagnostic reasoning to investigate possible causes and determine which condition best explains the evidence. Screening instead supports early detection in people being assessed for a condition before a confirmed diagnosis is established. Both approaches can identify health concerns, but they serve different points in clinical evaluation.
The workflow begins with assessment of symptoms, medical history, and physical findings. Clinicians then develop and refine a differential diagnosis by comparing the evidence with characteristic disease patterns. Laboratory analyses, imaging, physiological measurements, or pathology may follow to confirm or exclude possibilities. The resulting diagnosis informs treatment, prognosis, risk assessment, and monitoring.
The choice depends on what kind of evidence is needed to evaluate the suspected condition. Laboratory analysis, imaging, physiological measurement, and pathology offer distinct ways to examine biological findings, structures, function, or tissue-related evidence. Selecting among them helps clinicians test specific possibilities in the differential diagnosis and obtain information that can clarify the patient’s condition.
An accurate diagnosis helps clinicians select appropriate treatment and estimate prognosis, meaning the expected course or outcome of a condition. Diagnostic information also supports risk assessment and tracking of disease progression or response to therapy. In broader clinical practice, it contributes to personalized care, while diagnostic research seeks approaches that improve patient outcomes.