Common presentations

Question 1

Shortness of breath (acute onset over seconds)

Answer 1

• PE/DVT
• Pneumothorax
• Anaphylaxis
• Foreign body inhalation
• Cardiac arryhthmia
• Asthma attack
• APO
• AMI
• Respiratory failure

Question 2

Shortness of breath (acute), wheeze ± cough

Answer 2

Emergency:

• Asthma attack
• Infective exacerbation of COPD
• Acute viral/bacterial bronchitis
• Acute left ventricular failure due to ?cardiac event, valvular disease, electrolyte imbalance, arryhthmia
• Anaphylaxis

Question 3

Acute Abdominal Pain

Answer 3

CVS:

• Dissection

GI:

• Adhesions
• Incarcerated/strangulated hernia
• Cholecystitis
• Gastric ulcer
• Appendicitis
• Acute pancreatitis
• Acute diverticulitis
• Ulcerative colitis
• Crohn’s disease
• Cholelithiasis
• Gastrointestinal malignancy
• Gastroenteritis
• Infectious colitis

Repro:

• Ectopic pregnancy
• Pelvic inflammatory disease
• Endometriosis
• Testicular torsion

Kidney:

• Kidney stones
• Pyelonephritis

Question 4

Back Pain

Answer 4

Emergency:

• AAA/dissection
• Acute pancreatitis
• Perforated peptic ulcer

Spinal:

• Lumbar muscular strain/sprain
• Herniated nucleus pulposus (HNP)
• Spinal stenosis
• Compression fracture
• Degenerative disc disease or facet arthropathy
• Spondylolysis and/or spondylolisthesis
• Vertebral discitis/osteomyelitis
• Malignancy
• Inflammatory spondyloarthropathy

Other

• Connective tissue disease
• Pyelonephritis
• Renal colic
• RENAL CELL CARCINOMA

Question 5

Chest Pain

Answer 5

Emergency:

• Acute coronary syndrome
• Stable angina
• Pulmonary embolism
• Aortic dissection
• Tamponade
• Pneumothorax
• PE/DVT
• Pericarditis (which could progress to tamponade)

Other:

• GORD
• Pneumonia
• Costochondritis
• Anxiety or panic disorder

Uncommon

• Aortic stenosis
• Mitral valve prolapse
• Pulmonary hypertension
• Peptic ulcer disease (PUD)
• Oesophageal spasm
• Acute cholecystitis
• Pancreatitis
• Herpes zoster
• Gastritis

Question 7

Cough

Question 8

Diarrhoea

Answer 8

• IBD - Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis
• Infectious colitis
  *

Question 9

Constipation

Answer 9

• Small bowel obstruction
• Large bowel obstruction
• Colorectal CA
• Poor fibre intake

Question 10

Dizziness

Answer 10

• Orthostatic hypotension
• BPPV
• Meniere’s disease

Question 14

Fever

Question 15

Headache

Question 17

Itch

Question 18

Joint pain

Question 19

Palpitations

Question 20

Syncope

Question 21

Weight Gain

Question 22

Nausea/Vomiting

Question 23

Weight Loss

Question 24

Wheeze

Question 25

Hemoptysis

Question 26

Edema

Question 27

Seizure

Question 28

Tremor

Question 29

Visual Disturbance

Question 30

Dysphagia

Question 31

Goitre

Question 32

Muscle Weakness

Question 33

PR blood

Question 34

Hematochezia

Question 35

Urinary Obstruction

Question 36

Dysuria