Abdomen and Musculoskeletal Analysis
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Abdomen and Musculoskeletal Analysis
Part 1: G1
When evaluating a patient for abdominal pain, it is crucial to ask the patient to point out the area of pain.
Which method does the patient use? Is it a single finger or spread fingers throughout the entire abdomen?
Are there any irritating or alleviating factors? Fatty foods may be a part of the former. Sitting back or taking medication could be examples of the latter.
How frequently and how long does the pain last?
In what way does it hurt? Take a look at your body (Knott, 2022). Colic is generally characterized by a clenched fist, whereas a searing pain often is depicted with an open palm rising upwards.
Are there any places that may have radiation?
An abdominal mass, in most cases, is located during a routine physical examination. Masses in the abdomen get assessed through:
Angiography
CT Scan of the abdomen
Use of barium enema
Conducting an isotope study and colonoscopy
Carrying out an abdominal X-ray
Palpation Encounter
In a previous inspection of a patient with a palpated mass in his abdomen, I encountered several findings. During the assessment of my patient, I discovered crucial elements through visual examination of the abdomen, including skin anomalies, lumps, and the motion of the abdominal wall during respiration. More importantly, it is possible to determine the pathology of the intra-abdominal organs and tissues by auscultation and palpation of abnormalities found during physical examination. Nevertheless, during the inspection, I was keen to note any abnormalities (Ferguson, 2022). I noted a bluish discoloration on the umbilicus.
Further, I noted engorged veins on the abdominal wall during the inspection. I was particularly interested in detecting abdominal crepitus, discomfort, or tumors during palpation. In normal persons, one can feel their kidneys and liver; however, any other mass is wrong.
Various portions of my hands needed to get used on the patient during palpation. My hands served as my tools in this situation. Keeping my nails trimmed and my palms warm was a necessity. When touching mucous membranes or regions that come into contact with bodily fluids, it was imperative to wear gloves.
Last but not least, I felt for the tender spots. Through light palpation, I could feel surfaces from the patient's abdomen with abnormalities. Depressing my fingers on the patient using my fingers made it possible to assess the tenderness, temperature, pulsations, elasticity, and masses. I identified the mass as intra-abdominal (Ferguson, 2022), examining the cause of the masses. Through the examination process, I encountered the respiratory movement and pulsation of the patient. The use of deep palpation made it possible for masses and internal organs for their sizes, symmetry, tenderness, and mobility. I got prompted to depress the patient's skin close to 2 inches firmly, using deep pressure. In this case, I had to use one of my hands on the other to exert extra pressure as necessary.
Part 2: Musculoskeletal
Osteoarthritis
Osteoarthritis is also a degenerative joint disease that most commonly develops in older people (Topics, 2022). Joint inflammation and injury can lead to bone alterations, degeneration of the tendons and ligaments, and a disintegration of cartilage, leading to discomfort, swelling, and misalignment of the joints.
Rheumatoid arthritis
In rheumatoid arthritis, one's body's immune system mistakenly assaults healthy cells, causing inflammation (painful swelling), and an autoimmune and inflammatory condition. RA generally affects several different joint areas at the same time.
Comparison
Rheumatoid arthritis may begin at any point in life, while osteoarthritis usually happens later in a person's life.
The onset of rheumatoid arthritis is rapid, unlike osteoarthritis (Staff, 2022), which is slow.
Osteoarthritis causes wear and tear on the cartilage joint surface. Osteoarthritis begins in a single joint and progresses from there. Rheumatoid arthritis, on the other hand, is an autoimmune illness that causes the immune system to fight the body rather than invaders.
Contrast
Both osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis share joint symptoms where the individuals suffer painfully swollen and stiff joints (Staff, 2022).
In both types of arthritis, morning sickness lasts more than one hour.
References
Ferguson, C. (2022). Inspection, Auscultation, Palpation, and Percussion of the Abdomen. Ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. Retrieved 9 June 2022, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK420/.
Knott, D. (2022). Gastrointestinal History and Examination. Information. Patient.info. Retrieved 9 June 2022, from https://patient.info/doctor/gastrointestinal-history-and-examination.
Staff, H. (2022). Comparing Rheumatoid Arthritis and Osteoarthritis. Myhealth.alberta.ca. Retrieved 9 June 2022, from https://myhealth.alberta.ca/Health/Pages/conditions.aspx?hwid=aa19377.
Topics, H. (2022). Osteoarthritis | OA | MedlinePlus. Medlineplus.gov. Retrieved 9 June 2022, from https://medlineplus.gov/osteoarthritis.html.