Signs and symptoms (S/S) are diagnostic indications of an illness, injury, or condition. While signs are objective and externally observable, symptoms are a person's reported subjective experiences. A sign, for example, can be an elevated or lower than normal temperature or blood pressure, or an abnormal finding showing on medical imaging. A symptom is something out of the ordinary that is experienced by an individual such as feeling feverish, a headache or other pains in the body. Symptoms can be a result of the immune system's response to an infection, the physical manifestation of an abnormal body condition, or the effect of a consumed substance. Symptoms, though often indicative of a disease process, are not always diagnostically relevant, and can be idiopathic in nature.
Signs and symptoms
Signs A medical sign is an objective observable indication of a disease, injury, or medical condition that may be detected during a physical examination. These signs may be visible, such as a rash or bruise, or otherwise detectable such as by using a stethoscope or taking blood pressure. Medical signs, along with symptoms, help in forming a diagnosis. Some examples of signs are nail clubbing of either the fingernails or toenails or an abnormal gait.
Symptoms A symptom is something felt or experienced, such as pain or dizziness. Signs and symptoms are not mutually exclusive; for example a subjective feeling of fever can be noted as a sign by using a thermometer that registers a high reading. The CDC lists various diseases by their signs and symptoms such as for measles which includes a high fever, conjunctivitis, and cough, followed a few days later by the measles rash.
Cardinal signs and symptoms Cardinal signs and symptoms are very specific even to the point of being pathognomonic. A cardinal sign or cardinal symptom can also refer to the major sign or symptom of a disease. Abnormal reflexes can indicate problems with the nervous system. Signs and symptoms are also applied to physiological states outside the context of disease, as for example when referring to the signs and symptoms of pregnancy, or the symptoms of dehydration. Sometimes a disease may be present without showing any signs or symptoms when it is known as being asymptomatic. The disorder may be discovered through tests including scans. An infection may be asymptomatic but still be transmissible.
Syndrome
Signs and symptoms are often non-specific, but some combinations can be suggestive of certain diagnoses, helping to narrow down what may be wrong. A particular set of characteristic signs and symptoms that may be associated with a disorder is known as a syndrome.
Related terms
Symptomatic When a disease is evidenced by symptoms it is known as symptomatic. There are many conditions including subclinical infections that display no symptoms, and these are termed asymptomatic. Signs and symptoms may be mild or severe, brief or longer-lasting when they may become reduced (remission), or then recur (relapse or recrudescence) known as a flare-up. A flare-up may show more severe symptoms. The term chief complaint, also "presenting problem", is used to describe the initial concern of an individual when seeking medical help, and once this is clearly noted a history of the present illness may be taken. The symptom that ultimately leads to a diagnosis is called a cardinal symptom. Some symptoms can be misleading as a result of referred pain, where for example a pain in the right shoulder may be due to an inflamed gallbladder and not to presumed muscle strain.
Prodrome Many diseases have an early prodromal stage where a few signs and symptoms may suggest the presence of a disorder before further specific symptoms may emerge. Measles for example has a prodromal presentation that includes a hacking cough, fever, and Koplik's spots in the mouth. Over half of migraine episodes have a prodromal phase. Schizophrenia has a notable prodromal stage, as has dementia.
Nonspecific symptoms Some symptoms are specific (pathognomic), that is, they are associated with a single, specific medical condition. Nonspecific symptoms, sometimes also called equivocal symptoms, are not specific to a particular condition. They include unexplained weight loss, headache, pain, fatigue, loss of appetite, night sweats, and malaise. Other sub-types of symptoms include:
constitutional or general symptoms, which affect general well-being or the whole body, such as a fever; concomitant symptoms, which are symptoms that occur at the same time as the primary symptom; prodromal symptoms, which are the first symptoms of a bigger set of problems; delayed symptoms, which happen some time after the trigger; and objective symptoms, which are symptoms whose existence can be observed and confirmed by a healthcare provider.
Vital signs Vital signs are the four signs that can give an immediate measurement of the body's overall functioning and health status. They are temperature, heart rate, breathing rate, and blood pressure. The ranges of these measurements vary with age, weight, gender and general health.
Syndromes
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