Aaron's sign

Aaron's sign is a referred pain felt in the epigastrium upon continuous firm pressure over McBurney's point. It is indicative of chronic appendicitis.

Aaron sign is named for Charles Dettie Aaron, an  American gastroenterologist.

Abadie's sign

Abadie's sign is Spasm of the Levator Palpebrae Superioris muscle with retraction of the upper lid (so that sclera is visible above cornea) seen in Graves-Basedow disease which, together with exophthalmos causes the bulging eyes appearance.

Abadie's symptom

Abadie's symptom may be elicited during clinical examination. Pinching of, or the application of firm pressure to, the Achilles tendon does not result in pain in tabes dorsalis. This is because the sense of deep pain has been abolished.

It is named for Joseph Louis Irenée Jean Abadie, a French neurologist.

The Abderhalden reaction

The Abderhalden reaction is a now defunct blood test for pregnancy developed by Emil Abderhalden. In 1909 Abderhalden found that on identification of a foreign protein in the blood, the body reacts with a defensive fermentation that causes disintegration of the protein. He developed the test in 1912. This test was apparently contentious soon after its development and a significant body of work was published both in support of and refuting the test's reliability. The test's overall unreliability led to its being superseded in 1928 by the Aschheim-Zondek test.

Abelin reaction

The Abelin reaction is a qualitative reaction for demonstrating the presence of arsphenamine and neoarsphenamine in blood and urine.

It is named for Issak Abelin, Swiss physiologist.

Adson's sign

Adson's sign is seen during abduction and external rotation at the shoulder, where there is loss of the radial pulse in the arm.

Alexander's law

Alexander's law is manifested during spontaneous nystagmus in a patient bearing a vestibular lesion. The nystagmus becomes more intense when the patient looks in the quick-phase than in the slow-phase direction.

Allen's test

In medicine, Allen's test, also Allen test, is used to test blood supply to the hand. It is performed prior to radial arterial blood sampling or cannulation. The hand is elevated and the ulnar and radial arteries are both compressed until blanching of the hand is seen. Upon removal of pressure from one of the arteries, the redness of the hand is observed.

Apley grind test

The Apley grind test or Apley test is used to evaluate individuals for problems in the meniscus of the knee. In order to perform the test, the individual lays face-down on an examination table and flexes a knee to a ninety degree angle. The examiner then places his or her own knee across the posterior aspect of the patient's thigh. The tibia is then compressed onto the knee joint while being externally rotated. If this maneuver produces pain, this constitutes a "positive Apley test" and damage to the meniscus is likely.

The Apley test is named for Alan Graham Apley (1914-1996), a British orthopedic surgeon.

Argyll Robertson pupils

Argyll Robertson pupils are small, unequal, irregularly shaped pupils that constrict with accommodation but do not react normally to light. This means that while the eyes can focus on objects both near and far, the direct and consensual response to light are reduced or absent. These are usually, but not always caused by central nervous system complications of syphilis.

Arneth count

The Arneth count or Arneth index describes the nucleus of a type of white blood cell called a neutrophil in an attempt to detect disease. Neutrophils typically have two or three lobes. In general, older neutrophils have more lobes than younger neutrophils. The Arneth count determines the percentage of neutrophils with one, two, three, four, and five or more lobes. Individuals who have a larger percentage of neutrophils with fewer lobes have a left shift, which can be indicative of disease processes such as infection. Individuals with a larger percentage of neutrophils with more lobes have a right shift and most commonly have diseases such as vitamin B12 or folate deficiency. The Arneth count is not commonly used in modern medicine.

Aschoff body

An Aschoff body is a form of granulomatous inflammation characteristically observed in acute rheumatic carditis. Fully developed Aschoff bodies consist of fibrinoid change in connective tissue, lymphocytes, occasional plasma cells, and abnormal characteristic histiocytes.

Auer rods

Auer rods are seen in the leukemic blasts of acute myelogenous leukemia. Auer rods are clumps of azurophilic granular material that form elongated needles seen in the cytoplasm of leukemic blasts. They are composed of fused lysosomes and contain peroxidase, lysosomal enzymes, and large crystalline inclusions.

These cytoplasmic inclusions were named by John Auer, an American physiologist (1875-1948).

Auspitz's sign

Auspitz's sign is the appearance of punctate bleeding spots when psoriasis scales are scraped off.

It is named for Heinrich Auspitz.

Austin Flint murmur

In cardiology, an Austin Flint murmur is detected in cases of severe aortic regurgitation. The blood jets from the aortic regurgitation strike the anterior leaflet of the mitral valve, leading to a mid-diastolic, low-pitched rumbling best heard at the cardiac apex.

Surgical valve replacement may be necessary to correct the abnormality if symptomatic.

It is named after the 19th century American physician Austin Flint (1812–1886).

Babinski reflex

In medicine (neurology), the Babinski reflex or Babinski sign is a reflex that can identify disease of the spinal cord and brain. It is more properly called the plantar reflex, as Babinski's sign in reality only refers to the pathological form.

Bairnsdale ulcer

The Buruli ulcer (also known as the Bairnsdale ulcer) is an infectious disease caused by the Mycobacterium ulcerans, from the same family of bacteria which causes tuberculosis and leprosy. The infection causes painless swelling, with lesions developing in the skin later on. Further progression of these bacteria produces toxins that suppress the immune system and destroy skin, underlying tissue and bone, causing severe deformities. It predominantly affects the limbs.

Battle's sign

Battle's sign is an indication of fracture of the base of the posterior portion of the skull and may suggest underlying brain trauma. It consists of bruising immediately behind the ears. Another common bruising sign of a skull injury is raccoon's eyes, the purplish discoloration around the eyes following fracture of the frontal portion of the skull base.

This sign is named after William Henry Battle.

Beau's lines

Beau's lines are deep grooved lines that run from side to side on the fingernail. They may look like indentations or ridges in the nail plate. There are several reasons that humans get Beau's lines. It is believed that there is a temporary cessation of cell division in the nail matrix. This may be caused by an infection or problem in the nail fold, where the nail begins to form, or it may be caused by an injury to that area. Some other reasons for these lines include: trauma, coronary occlusion, hypocalcemia, skin disease and may be a sign of systemic disease. It may also be caused by an illness of the body, such as diabetes, certain drugs, such as those used in chemotherapy or even malnutrition.

This condition of the nail was named by a French physician, Joseph Honoré Simon Beau (1806-1865), who first described it in 1846.

Beck's triad

Beck's triad is comprised of fall in the systolic pressure, rising jugular venous pressure and suppressed heart sounds. These findings are typical of cardiac tamponade.

1: The rising jugular venous pressure is evidenced by distended jugular veins while in a non-supine position. It is caused by reduced diastolic filling of the right ventricle, due to the outside pressure being exerted on it by the expanding pericardial sac. This results of a backup of fluid into the veins draining into the heart, most notably, the jugulars.

2: The fall in systolic pressure results when the fluid in the pericardial cavity accumulates to a degree that it impairs ventricular stretch, thus reducing stroke volume and cardiac output.

3: The suppressed heart sounds occur due to the muffling effects of the sounds passing through the fluid surrounding the heart.

Bence Jones protein

A Bence Jones protein is a protein often found in the blood and urine of patients with multiple myeloma. The proteins are immunoglobulin free light chains (paraproteins) and are produced by defective plasma cell function. There are various rarer conditions, which can produce Bence Jones proteins, such as Waldenström's macroglobulinemia and other malignancies.

The Bence Jones protein was described by the English physician Henry Bence Jones in 1847 and published in 1848.

Benedict's solution

Benedict's reagent (also called Benedict's solution or Benedict's test) is a reagent used as a test for the presence of reducing sugars (such as glucose, lactose, and fructose, but not sucrose), or more generally for the presence of aldehydes, in a solution.

Biot's respirations

Biot's respirations, sometimes also called cluster respiration, is an abnormal pattern of breathing characterized by groups of quick, shallow inspirations followed by regular or irregular periods of apnea. It is distinguished from ataxic respiration by having more regularity and similar-sized inspirations, whereas ataxic respirations are characterized by completely irregular breaths and pauses. As the breathing pattern deteriorates, it merges with ataxic respirations. It is caused by damage to the medulla oblongata due to strokes or trauma or by pressure on the medulla due to uncal or tentorial herniation. It generally indicates a poor prognosis.

Bitot's spots

Bitot's spots are spots located superficially in the conjunctiva, which are oval, triangular or irregular in shape. It is a sign of vitamin A deficiency. Therefore, it is seen with night blindness. In ancient Egypt, this was treated with animal liver.

Blumberg sign

Blumberg sign is indicative of peritonitis. The abdominal wall is compressed slowly and rapidly released. Presence of pain makes the sign positive.

Boston's sign

Boston's sign, (also known as Graefe's sign) is seen in people who have Graves-Basedow disease, a type of hyperthyroidism. In this disease, the immune system attacks the thyroid gland and the soft tissues surrounding the eyes. As a result, the eye are often pushed forward in the eye sockets, a condition known as exophthalmos. Boston's sign occurs when the upper eyelid fails to lower when gaze is directed downward.

Bouchard's nodes

Bouchard's nodes are seen in the proximal interphalangeal joints. They are a sign of osteoarthritis, they are less common than Heberden's nodes. They are bony outgrowths on the proximal interphalangeal joints.

Braxton Hicks

Braxton Hicks' contractions, also known as false labour (British English, false labor in American English) or practice contractions, occur during the second or third trimester of pregnancy. It is a tightening of the uterine muscles for up to one minute and is thought to be an aid to the body in its preparation for birth. Not all expectant mothers have these contractions which can start as early as 20 weeks into the pregnancy. They are thought to be part of the process of effacement, the thinning and dilation of the cervix.

Braxton Hicks are named after the English doctor that first described them. In 1872, John Braxton Hicks investigated the latter stages of pregnancy and noted that many women felt contractions without being anywhere near birth. This process was usually painless but caused confusion to the women as to whether or not they were going into actual labour. It has since been found that Braxton Hicks' contractions are much less noticeable during exercise, real contractions, however, are not. Dehydration is thought to be a contributory factor in extended Braxton Hicks contractions.

Meningitis

Meningitis is inflammation of the membranes (meninges) covering the brain and the spinal cord. Although the most common causes are infection (bacterial, viral, fungal or parasitic), chemical agents and even tumor cells may cause meningitis. Meningitis can produce a wide range of symptoms including fever, headache or confusion and in extreme cases, brain damage, stroke, seizures or even death. Encephalitis and brain abscess can complicate infective meningitis.

Brushfield spots

Brushfield spots are small white spots on the periphery of the iris in the human eye and are a feature of Down syndrome. They are named after a physician, Thomas Brushfield who first described them in 1924. They are focal areas of iris stromal hyperplasia, surrounded by relative hypoplasia and are more common in patients with lightly pigmented irises.

Caput medusae

Caput medusae is the appearance of distended and engorged umbilical veins, which are seen radiating from the umbilicus across the abdomen to join systemic veins. The name caput medusae (Latin for "head of Medusa") originates from the apparent similarity to Medusa's hair once Minerva had turned it into snakes.

Inflammation

Inflammation is the first response of the immune system to infection or irritation and may be referred to as the innate cascade. Inflammation is characterized by the following quintet: redness (rubor), heat (calor), swelling (tumor), pain (dolor) and dysfunction of the organs involved (functio laesa). The first four characteristics have been known since ancient times and are attributed to Celsus; functio laesa was added to the definition of inflammation by Rudolf Virchow in 1858.

Chadwick's Sign

Chadwick's Sign, also known as Hyperpigmentation in Pregnancy, is a bluish discoloration of the cervix, vagina and vulva from venous congestion. It can be observed as early as 6-8 weeks after conception, and is often used as an early sign of pregnancy.

These color changes were discovered in approximately 1836 by French Doctor Etienne Joseph Jacquemin (1796-1872)

Charcot's triads

There are two sets of Charcot's triads, both of which are sets of clinical signs relating to quite separate diseases. One pertains to multiple sclerosis while the other refers to cholangitis. Charcot's triads are named after Jean-Martin Charcot (1825-1893), the French neurologist who first described these combinations of signs in relation to these diseases.

Charcot's triad I: The combination of nystagmus, intention tremor, and scanning or staccato speech. This triad is sometimes associated with multiple sclerosis but is not, however, as previously considered by some authors, pathognomic for multiple sclerosis.

Charcot's triad II: The combination of jaundice; fever, usually with rigors; and upper quadrant abdominal pain. Occurs as a result of cholangitis. When the presentation also includes hypotension and mental status changes, it is known as Reynolds' pentad.

Charcot-Leyden crystals

Charcot-Leyden crystals are microscopic crystals seen in people who have asthma or parasitic pneumonia. These crystals long, clear, and have points at each end. They are comprised of lysophospholipase, an enzyme, which is found in eosinophils, a particular kind of white blood cell. These eosinophils are active in both allergic diseases (such as asthma) and parasitic infections (such as ascariasis).

Cheyne-Stokes respiration

Cheyne-Stokes respiration is an abnormal pattern of breathing characterized by periods of breathing with gradually increasing and decreasing tidal volume interspersed with periods of apnea. In cases of increasing intracranial pressure, it is often the first abnormal breathing pattern to appear.

The condition was named after John Cheyne and William Stokes, the physicians who first classified it.

This is caused by the failure of the respiratory center in the brain to compensate quickly for changing serum partial pressure of oxygen and carbon dioxide. This abnormal pattern of breathing can be seen in patients with strokes, head injuries or brain tumors, and in patients with congestive heart failure. In some instances, it can occur in otherwise normal people during sleep at high altitudes.

Cheyne-Stokes respirations are not the same as Biot's Respirations ("cluster breathing"), where groups of breaths tend to be similar in size.

Chvostek's sign

Chvostek's sign (also Weiss' sign) is one of the signs of tetany seen in hypocalcemia.

It refers to an abnormal reaction to the stimulation of the facial nerve. When the facial nerve is tapped at the angle of the jaw, the facial muscles on the same side of the face will contract momentarily (typically a twitch of the nose or lips) because of hypocalcemia and hyperexcitability of nerves.

It was first described by František Chvostek, an Austrian physician in 1876, and later independently by Nathan Weiss in 1883.

Trousseau's sign is also often used to detect early tetany.

Coombs Test

The Coombs Test (also Coombs' Test) is a blood test used to determine whether there are red blood cell antibodies, which leads usually to hemolysis, especially in Rh disease. Coombs antibody is an anti-human globulin. It was first described in 1945 by Cambridge immunologists Robin Coombs, Arthur Mourant and Rob Race. The test is also used in screening blood prior to blood transfusion.

Aortic insufficiency

Aortic insufficiency (AI), also known as aortic regurgitation (AR), is the leaking of the aortic valve of the heart that causes blood to flow in the reverse direction during ventricular diastole, from the aorta into the left ventricle.

Aortic insufficiency can be due to abnormalities of either the aortic valve or the aortic root (the beginning of the aorta).

Councilman body

A Councilman body, also known as a Councilman hyaline body, is an eosinophilic globule often found in the liver of individuals suffering from yellow fever. Each Councilman body results from the apoptotic death of a single liver cell. Until recently the presence of Councilman bodies in a liver biopsy was thought to be sufficient evidence for a diagnosis of yellow fever. However, they have since been found also to be present in other viral hemorrhagic fevers, and thus may no longer be considered as diagnostic for yellow fever.

Councilman bodies are named after American pathologist William T. Councilman (1854-1933), who discovered them.

Courvoisier's law

Courvoisier's law states that in the presence of a palpable gall bladder, jaundice is unlikely to be caused by gall stones. This is because gall stones are formed over a longer period of time, and this results in a shrunken, fibrotic gall bladder which does not distend easily. Therefore the gall bladder is more often enlarged in pathologies which causes obstruction of the bilary tree, which occur over a shorter period of time such as pancreatic malignancy than in gallstone disease.

Crowe sign

The Crowe sign is the presence of axillary (armpit) freckling in people with neurofibromatosis type I (von Recklinghausen's disease). These freckles occur in ~30% of people with the disease and are one of seven diagnostic criteria for neurofibromatosis.

Cullen's sign

Cullen's sign is blue-black bruising of the area around the umbilicus. Causes include acute pancreatitis, where methemalbumin formed from digested blood tracks around the abdomen from the inflamed pancreas, or bleeding from blunt abdominal trauma and ruptured ectopic pregnancy. Cullen was an Obstetrician and first described the sign in ruptured ectopic pregnancy. This sign takes 24-48 hours to appear and predicts a severe attack of acute pancreatitis, with mortality rising from 8-10% to 40%. It may be accompanied by Grey-Turner's sign.

Cushing's triad

Cushing's triad is the triad of hypertension, bradycardia, and Cheyne-Stokes respiration (irregular breathing) in patients with head injuries. It is named after Harvey Williams Cushing (1869-1939), the American neurosurgeon who first described this combination of signs. Identification of the combination of these signs is critically important, especially in the setting of emergency medicine because it is a sign of increasing intracranial pressure. A patient with these signs will usually require urgent life-saving surgery which may include drilling a burr hole into the head to release intracranial pressure.

Darier's sign

Darier's sign is a change observed after stroking the skin of a person with systemic mastocytosis or urticaria pigmentosa. In general, the skin becomes swollen, itchy and red. This is a result of compression of mast cells, which are hyperactive in these diseases. These mast cells release inflammatory granules, which contain histamine. It is the histamine, which is responsible for the response seen after rubbing the skin.

Darier's sign is named after the French dermatologist Ferdinand-Jean Darier who first described it.

Döhle bodies

Döhle bodies are light blue-gray, basophilic, leukocyte inclusions located in the peripheral cytoplasm of neutrophils. They measure 1-3 µm in diameter. Not much is known about their formation.

They are seen in:-

Burns

Infections

Trauma

Neoplastic diseases

Wissler’s disease

May-Hegglin’s anomaly

Chédiak-Steinbrinck-Higashi’s syndrome

Epstein's pearls

Epstein's pearls are small white cysts often seen in the mouth of newborn infants. They are typically seen on the roof of the mouth (palate) and are filled with fluid. They are completely harmless and do not require treatment. They typically disappear without any treatment over the first few weeks of life.

Ewart's sign

Ewart's sign is a set of findings on physical examination in people with large collections of fluid around their heart (pericardial effusions). Dullness to percussion, egophony, and bronchial breath sounds may be appreciated at the tip of the left scapula when the effusion is large enough to compress the left lower lobe of the lung, causing consolidation or atelectasis. It was first described by William Ewert in 1896.

Finkelstein's test

Finkelstein's test is used to diagnose DeQuervain's tenosynovitis in people who have wrist pain. To perform the test, the thumb is placed in the closed fist and the hand is tilted towards the little finger, as shown in the image. If pain occurs at the wrist below the thumb, DeQuervain's tenosynovitis is likely. Finkelstein's test was first described by Harry Finkelstein, an American surgeon.

Froment's sign

Froment's sign tests for palsy of the ulnar nerve, specifically, the action of adductor pollicis. To perform the test, a patient is asked to hold an object, usually a piece of paper, between the thumb and a flat palm. The object is then is pulled away. A normal individual will be able to maintain a hold the object without difficulty. However, with ulnar nerve palsy, the patient will experience difficultly maintaining a hold and will compensate by flexing the thumb.

Goodell's sign

In medicine, Goodell's sign is an indication of pregnancy. It is a significant softening of the vaginal portion of the cervix.

Dermatomyositis

Dermatomyositis is connective-tissue disease that is characterized by inflammation of the muscles and the skin. Its cause is unknown, but it may result from either a viral infection or an autoimmune reaction. Up to 50% of the cases may be a paraneoplastic phenomenon, indicating the presence of cancer.

X-ray findings include dystrophic calcifications in the muscles.

There is a form of this disorder that strikes children, known as juvenile dermatomyositis.

"Gottron's papules", pink patches on the knuckles, are associated with this disorder.

Grey Turner's sign

Grey Turner's sign is said to be present when there is bruising in the flanks of the abdomen secondary to acute hemorrhagic pancreatitis or any other cause of hemorrhage into the retroperitoneum.

Heberden's nodes

Heberden's nodes are seen in the distal interphalangeal joints. They are a sign of osteoarthritis. They are bony outgrowths or palpable osteophytes on the distal interphalangeal joints.

This pathology is more commonly seen in men than women.

Bouchard's nodes may also be present.

Hegar's sign

Hegar's sign is an indication of pregnancy in a human female, specifically the compressibility and softening of the cervical isthmus (the portion of the cervix between the uterus and the vaginal portion of the cervix) and the uterine cervix appearing bluish and engorged.

The sign is usually present during second and third months of pregnancy from the fourth to sixth week. It is not a positive indicator of pregnancy, and its absence does not exclude pregnancy.

The indicator was originally described by Ernst Ludwig Alfred Hegar, a German gynecologist, in 1895. Hegar credits one of his students for discovering the sign.

Hippocratic fingers

In medicine, clubbing (or digital clubbing) is a deformity of the fingers and fingernails that is associated with a number of diseases, mostly of the heart and lungs. Idiopathic clubbing can also occur. Hippocrates was probably the first to document clubbing as a sign of disease, and the phenomenon is therefore occasionally called Hippocratic fingers.

Hoffmann's sign

In medicine, Hoffmann's sign, also known as the finger flexor reflex, is a finding elicited by a reflex test which verifies the presence or absence of problems in the corticospinal tract.

The test involves tapping the nail or flicking the terminal phalanx of the third or fourth finger. A positive response is seen with flexion of the terminal phalanx of the thumb.

It is often considered the upper limb equivalent of the Babinski's sign because it, like the Babinski sign, indicates upper motor neuron dysfunction. Mechanistically, it differs considerably from the Babinski or plantar reflex; Hoffman's sign involves a monosynaptic reflex pathway in Rexed lamina IX of the spinal cord, normally fully inhibited by descending input. The pathways involved in the plantar reflex are more complicated.

Homan's sign

Homan's sign is said to be present when sharp dorsiflexion of the ankle by the examiner elicits sharp pain in the calf. It is caused by a thrombosis of the deep veins of the leg. This sign is rarely elicited in clinical practice because of the risk of embolization.

Hoover’s sign

Movement of the costal margins toward the midline during inhalation, occurring bilaterally in pulmonary emphysema and unilaterally in conditions causing flattening of the diaphragm, such as pleural effusion and pneumothorax.

Hutchinson's teeth

Hutchinson's teeth are a sign of congenital syphilis. Babies with this have teeth that are smaller and more widely spaced than normal and which have notches on their biting surfaces. It is named after Sir Jonathan Hutchinson, an English surgeon and pathologist, who first described them.

Hutchinson's teeth form part of Hutchinson's triad.

Also known as:-

Hutchinson's incisor

Hutchinson’s sign

Hutchinson-Boeck teeth

Janeway lesions

Janeway lesions are non-tender, small erythematous or hemorrhagic macules or nodules in the palms or soles, which are pathognomonic of infective endocarditis.

They are named after Theodore Caldwell Janeway (1872-1917), a professor of medicine with interests in cardiology and infectious disease.

Jendrassik maneuver

Jendrassik maneuver (Erno Jendrassik, Hungarian physician, 1858–1921) is a medical maneuver where the patient flexes both sets of fingers into a hook like form and interlocks those sets of fingers together. The tendon beneath the patient's knees is then hit with a reflex hammer. The elicited response is compared with the reflex result of the same action when the maneuver is not in use.

John Thomas sign

The John Thomas sign, also known as the Throckmorton sign is the position of the penis as it relates to pathology on an x-ray of the pelvis. When the penis (visible on the x-ray as a shadow) points towards a condition such as a broken bone, this is considered a "positive John Thomas sign." This sign is of dubious medical significance and is mostly employed as a humorous aside.

Kayser-Fleisher

Kayser-Fleisher rings are pigmented rings in the peripheral cornea, resulting from copper deposition in Descemet's membrane. They are usually brownish or greenish-yellow, encircling the whole cornea.

Kayser-Fleisher rings are a sign of Wilson's disease, which involves abnormal copper handling by the liver resulting in copper accumulation in the body and is characterized by cerebral degenerative changes, liver cirrhosis, splenomegaly, involuntary movements, muscle rigidity, psychic disturbances, and dysphagia.

Kehr's sign

Kehr's sign is the occurrence of acute pain in the tip of the shoulder due to the presence of blood or other irritants in the peritoneal cavity when a person is lying down and the legs are elevated. Kehr's sign in the left shoulder is considered a classical symptom of a ruptured spleen. The discovery of this is often attributed to a German gall bladder surgeon named Hans Kehr, but extensive studies into research he conducted during his life shows inconclusive evidence as to whether or not he actually discovered it.

Koplik's spots

Koplik's spots are bluish-white spots seen on the buccal mucosa (mucous membrane of the inside of the cheek) and are pathognomonic of measles. They are named after Henry Koplik (1858-1927), an American pediatrician who first described them in 1896. They often appear a few days before the rash arrives and can be a useful sign to look for in children known to be exposed to the measles virus.

Korotkoff sounds

Korotkoff sounds are the sounds that medical personnel listen for when they are taking blood pressure using a non-invasive procedure. They are named after Dr. Nikolai Korotkoff, a Russian physician who described them in 1905, when he was working at the Imperial Medical Academy in St. Petersburg.

Kussmaul breathing

Kussmaul breathing is the rapid, deep, and labored breathing (see hyperventilation) of people who have acidosis. Kussmaul breathing is named for Adolph Kussmaul, the 19th century German doctor who first noted it. It is also called "air hunger".

The cause of Kussmaul breathing is respiratory compensation for a metabolic acidosis, most commonly occurring in diabetics in diabetic ketoacidosis. Blood gases on a patient with Kussmaul breathing will show a low pCO2 because of a forced increased respiratory rate (blowing off the carbon dioxide). The patient feels an urge to breathe deeply, and it appears almost involuntary.

The effect can be reproduced, to a degree, by rapidly breathing in the air in a recently-emptied plastic soft-drink bottle, which will normally contain a substantial amount of carbon dioxide.

Kussmaul's sign

Kussmaul's sign is the observation of a jugular venous pressure (JVP, the filling of the jugular vein) that rises with inspiration. It can be seen in some forms of heart disease.

Lachman test

A Lachman test is a medical test used for examining the ACL (Anterior Cruciate Ligament) in the knee for patients where there is a suspicion of a torn ACL.

To do this, lie the patient supine on a bed. Put the patient's knee in about 20-30 degrees flexion. The examiner should place one hand behind the tibia and the other on the patient's thigh. On pulling anteriorly on the tibia, an intact ACL should prevent forward translational movement of the tibia on the femur. More than about 2mm of anterior translation compared to the uninvolved knee suggests a torn ACL and / or 10 mm of total anterior translation. A "KT-1000" is used to determine "mm" of movement.

Leser-Trelat sign

The sign of Leser-Trelat, the explosive onset of multiple pruritic seborrheic keratoses, often with an inflammatory base, can be an ominous sign of internal malignancy. In addition to the development of new lesions, preexisting ones frequently increase in size and become symptomatic. Although most associated neoplasms are gastrointestinal adenocarcinomas (stomach, liver, colorectal and pancreas), breast and lung cancers, and lymphoid malignancies are occasionally discovered [22]. It is likely that various cytokines and other growth factors produced by the neoplasm are responsible for the abrupt appearance of the seborrheic keratoses. In some cases, paraneoplastic acanthosis nigricans accompanies the sign of Leser-Trelat.

Levine's sign

Levine's sign is a clenched fist held over the chest to describe some forms of chest pain. It is named for Dr. Sam Levine who first observed that many patients suffering from chest pain made this same sign to describe their symptoms. The sign has a sensitivity of 80% for myocardial infarction (MI), i.e. in patients with cardiac pain and a heart attack, Levine's sign was positive in 80%; unfortunately, it is not very specific, as the absence of the sign in patients with cardiac pain would falsely miss 51% (Edmonstone 1995).

Lhermitte's Sign

Lhermitte's Sign is a sign that may help to diagnose Multiple Sclerosis and is indicated by electric-like sensations caused by flexing one's neck. It can also occur in conditions that cause compression of the spinal cord in the neck (the cervical spinal cord), such as a tumor, a cervical herniated disk or compression from deformed cervical vertebrae (cervical spondylogenic myelopathy).

Lisch nodules

Lisch nodules are iris hamartomas seen in neurofibromatosis.

Lisker's sign

Lisker's sign is tenderness when the front, middle (anterior medial) part of the tibia is tapped (percussion). It is often present in people who have blood clots in their legs (deep venous thrombosis).

Macewen's sign

Macewen's sign is a sign used to help to diagnose hydrocephalus (accumulation of excess cerebrospinal fluid) and brain abscesses. Tapping (percussion) the skull near the junction of the frontal, temporal and parietal bones will produce a stronger resonant sound when either hydrocephalus or a brain abscess are present.

The sign was discovered and described by Sir William Macewen (1848-1924), a surgeon and professor of the University of Glasgow, Scotland who also described Macewen's operation for inguinal hernia.

McBurney's point

Deep tenderness at McBurney's point is a sign of acute appendicitis. The point is one third of the distance from the right anterior superior iliac spine to the umbilicus. It corresponds to the tip of the subcecal appendix, which is the commonest position of the organ. If the appendix is retrocecal, then McBurney's sign may be absent despite the appendix being inflamed.

McMurray test,

The McMurray test, also known as the McMurray circumduction test is used to evaluate individuals for tears in the medial meniscus of the knee. In order to perform the test, the knee is flexed to ninety degrees. The examiner then places one hand on the lateral side of the knee to stabilize the joint and provide a valgus stress. The other hand rotates the foot externally while extending the knee. If pain or a "click" is felt, this constitutes a "positive McMurray test." The sensitivity of the McMurray test for medial meniscus tears is 53% and the specificity is 59%.

The McMurray test is named after Thomas Porter McMurray, a British orthopedic surgeon from the late nineteenth and early twentieth century.

Mee's lines

Mee's lines are horizontal lines of discoloration, which occur on the finger and toe nails after an episode of poisoning with arsenic or thallium. They are typically white bands traversing the width of the nail. With growth of the nail, they are displaced upward on the nail and eventually disappear when trimmed.

Mentzer index

The Mentzer index is used to differentiate iron deficiency anemia from beta thalassemia. It is calculated from the results of a complete blood count. If the quotient of the mean corpuscular volume divided by the red blood cell count is less than 13, thalassemia is more likely. If the result is greater than 13, then iron-deficiency anemia is more likely.

Murphy's punch sign

Murphy's punch sign is elicited when gently tapping the area of the back overlying the kidney produces pain in people with a infection around the kidney (perinephric abscess). Because the kidney lies directly below this area, known as the costovertebral angle, tapping disturbs the kidney. Because it is surrounded by infected fluid, this jarring motion produces pain.

This medical test was first described by the American surgeon John Benjamin Murphy.

Murphy's sign

In medicine, Murphy's sign refers to a physical examination manoeuvre (that is part of the abdominal examination) and a finding elicited in ultrasonography. It is useful for differentiating right upper quadrant pain. Typically, it is positive in cholecystitis, but negative in choledocholithiasis and cholangitis. It has a high sensitivity and specificity; however, should be interpreted with more caution in the elderly.

Myerson's sign

Myerson's sign is a medical condition where a patient is unable to resist blinking when tapped on the glabella, the area above the nose and between the eyebrows. It is often an early symptom of Parkinson's disease.

Nardi test

The Nardi test, also known as the morphine-neostigmine provocation test is a test for dysfunction of the sphincter of Oddi, a valve which divides the biliary tract from the duodenum. Two medications, morphine and neostigmine, are given to people with symptoms concerning for sphincter dysfunction, including sharp right-sided abdominal pain. If the pain is reproduced by the medications, then dysfunction is more likely. The test poorly predicts dysfunction, however, and is rarely used today.

The Nardi test was named for George Nardi, who first described the procedure in 1966.

Nikolsky's sign

Nikolsky's sign is a clinical dermatological sign in which blisters spread easily upon application of tension at the base of the lesion. Positive Nikolsky's sign signifies an intraepidermal splitting of keratinocytes. (Contrast from tense blisters; subepidermal blisters)

Osborn waves

Osborn waves (also known as camel-hump sign, late delta wave, hathook junction, hypothermic wave, J point wave, K wave, H wave or current of injury) are usually observed on the electrocardiogram of people suffering from hypothermia, though they may also occur in people with high blood levels of calcium (hypercalcemia), brain injury, vasospastic angina, or ventricular fibrillation. Osborn waves are positive deflections occurring at the junction between the QRS complex and the ST segment. These waves were definitively described in 1955 by JJ Osborn and were named in his honor.

Osler's nodes

Osler's nodes are red, raised lesions on the finger pads, indicative of the heart disease, subacute bacterial endocarditis. 10-25% of endocarditis patients will have Osler's nodes. It can also be seen on the soles of the feet. They are named after Sir William Osler.

It can also be seen in:-

SLE

marantic endocarditis

disseminated gonococcal infection

distal to infected arterial catheter

Osler's Sign

Osler's Sign is named in honor of the famous Professor William Osler, Professor of Medicine at the Johns Hopkins University is an artificially and falsely elevated blood pressure reading obtained through sphygmomanometry due to arteriosclerotic, calcified blood vessels which do not physiologically compress with pressure - therefore the blood pressure reading is higher than it truly ought to be.

Patrick's test

Patrick's test is performed by a health care provider to evaluate people who have low back pain for sacroiliitis. The knee is flexed to ninety degrees on the affected side and the foot is rested on the unaffected knee. Holding the pelvis firm against the examination table, the affected knee is pushed towards the examination table, a maneuver which provides external rotation of the leg at the hip joint. If pain results, this is considered a positive Patrick's test and sacroiliitis is more likely. However, Patrick's test does not prove that sacroiliitis is causing the back pain, just increases the likelihood.

Pemberton's sign

Pemberton's sign is the development of facial plethora, distended neck and head superficial veins, inspiratory stridor and elevation of the jugular venous pressure (JVP) upon raising of the patient's arms above his/her head. A positive Pemberton's sign is a sign of superior vena caval obstruction, possibly from a mass in the mediastinum, usually caused by a tumour or struma.

Phalen's maneuver

Phalen's maneuver is a test for carpal tunnel syndrome. The patient is asked to keep their wrist at the extremity of flexion for 30 seconds. The aim is to compress the carpal tunnel and thus elicit the characteristic symptoms of the carpal tunnel syndrome. If the patient experiences a burning, tingling or numb sensation over the thumb, index, middle and ring fingers, then the test is positive.

Phalen's maneuver is more sensitive than Tinel's sign.

Queckenstedt's maneuver

Queckenstedt's maneuver is an outdated clinical test, formerly used for diagnosing spinal stenosis. The test is performed by placing the patient in lateral decubitus position, thereafter the clinician performs a lumbar puncture. The opening pressure is measured. Then, the clinician's assistant compresses both jugular veins, which leads to a rise in the intracranial pressure. Given normal anatomy, the intracranial pressure will be reflected as a rapidly rising pressure measured from the lumbar needle. If the there is a stenosis in the spine, there will be a dampened, slowed response in the lumbar pressure, thus a positive Queckenstedt's maneuver. Nowadays, this test has been made mostly superfluous by superior imaging modalities like MRI and CAT.

Riggler's sign

Riggler's sign is seen on an x-ray of the abdomen when air is present within the space between the intestines, called the peritoneum. The air outlines the loops of intestine and allows a radiologist to clearly see the outside border in addition to the typically visible inside border. Air may be present in the peritoneum after perforation of the intestines or after surgery.

Rinne test

The Rinne test of hearing compares perception of sounds, as transmitted by air or by sound conduction through the mastoid.

In a normal ear, air conduction (AC) is better than bone conduction (BC)

AC > BC, positive Rinne.

In conductive hearing loss, bone conduction is better than air

BC > AC, negative Rinne.

In sensorineural hearing loss, bone conduction and air conduction are both equally depreciated, maintaining the relative difference of

AC > BC, positive Rinne.

In sensorineural hearing loss patients there may be a false negative Rinne

BC > AC,

if the normal ear is not masked, and bone conduction heard in the normal ear is reported as louder by the patient.

Romberg's test

Romberg's test is a neurological test of joint position sense (proprioception). It is positive in patients with sensory ataxia.

Rovsing's sign

Rovsing's sign refers to a test for appendicitis. If you palpate the lower left quadrant of a person's abdomen, and there is more pain in the right lower quadrant, the patient probably has appendicitis.

Schramroth's test

Schramroth's test is a test for clubbing of the fingernails. When the distal phalanges of corresponding digits of opposite hands are directly apposed, fingernail to fingernail, a small diamond-shaped "window" is apparent between the nailbeds. If this window is obliterated, the test is positive and clubbing is present.

Schilling test

The Schilling test is a medical investigation used in people with vitamin B12 deficiency. There are a few variations on the exact procedure used.

Schirmer's test

Schirmer's test determines whether the eye produces enough tears to keep it moist. This test is used when a person experiences very dry eyes or excessive watering of the eyes. It poses no risk to the subject. A negative (more than 10 mm of moisture on the filter paper in 5 minutes) test result is normal. Both eyes normally secrete the same amount of moisture.

Sister Mary Joseph sign

The Sister Mary Joseph sign, also called Sister Mary Joseph nodule or node, refers to a palpable lymph node near the umbilicus that is the result of metastatic gastric cancer. A Virchow's node is similarly the result of metastatic gastric cancer and represents a palpable left supraclavicular lymph node. Peritoneal metastasis can result in Krukenberg's tumor (enlarged ovary) and/or a Blumer's shelf (a mass in the cul-de-sac on rectal examination).

Sister Mary Joseph Dempsey was the surgical assistant of William J. Mayo at St. Mary's Hospital in Rochester, Minnesota from 1890 to 1915.

Stroop effect

In psychology, the Stroop effect is a demonstration of interference in the reaction time of a task. When a word such as blue, green, red, etc. is printed in a color differing from the color expressed by the word's semantic meaning (e.g. the word "red" printed in blue ink), a delay occurs in the processing of the word's color, leading to slower test reaction times and an increase in mistakes.

The effect is named after its discoverer, John Ridley Stroop, and was first noted in an article Studies of interference in serial verbal reactions published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology in 1935.

Tinel's sign

Tinel's sign is a way to detect irritated nerves. It is performed by lightly banging (percussing) over the nerve to elicit a sensation of tingling or "pins and needles" in the distribution of the nerve.

For example, in a person with carpal tunnel syndrome where the median nerve is compressed at the wrist, Tinel's sign is often "positive" and causes tingling in the thumb, index, and middle fingers. Tinel's sign is sometimes referred to as "distal tingling on percussion" or DTP.

Trendelenburg's Sign

Trendelenburg's Sign is found in people with weak abductor muscles of the hip. The sign can be elicited by having a person stand on one foot. If the persons hip shifts down towards the lifted leg (the person fails to abduct the hip to maintain a horizontally aligned hip) then the sign is positive for the leg still on the ground.

Trousseau sign

Trousseau sign is the name of two distinct phenomena observed in clinical medicine.

Both are attributed to Armand Trousseau:

Trousseau sign of latent tetany

In a patient with hypocalcemia, carpal spasm may be elicited by occluding the brachial artery. To perform the maneuver, a blood pressure cuff is placed around the arm and inflated to a pressure greater than the systolic blood pressure and held in place for 3 minutes. If carpal spasm occurs, manifested as flexion at the wrist and metacarpophalangeal joints, extension of the distal interphalangeal and proximal interphalangeal joints, and adduction of the thumb and fingers, the sign is said to be positive and the patient likely has hypocalcemia. This sign may become positive before other gross manifestations of hypocalcemia such as hyperreflexia and tetany, but is generally believed to be less sensitive than the Chvostek sign for hypocalcemia.

Trousseau sign of malignancy

Some malignancies, especially adenocarcinomas of the pancreas and lung, are associated with hypercoagulability for reasons that remain unclear. In patients with malignancy-associated hypercoaguable states, the blood may spontaneously form clots in the portal vessels, the deep veins of the extremities, or the superficial veins anywhere on the body. When recurrent clots form in different superficial veins around the body, this is described as migratory thrombophlebitis. Dr. Armand Trousseau first described this finding in himself; he was subsequently found to have pancreatic cancer.

Uhthoff's phenomenon

Uhthoff's phenomenon is the worsening of neurologic symptoms in multiple sclerosis after periods of exercise and increased body heat.

Virchow's triad

Virchow's triad refers to three factors that Rudolf Virchow suggested predisposed a patient to developing venous thrombosis. They are:

1) local trauma to the vessel wall

2) stasis (of blood flow)

3) hypercoagulability (of the blood)

Stated another way, they are: i) trouble with the vessel ii) trouble with the flow iii) trouble with the blood itself.

Virchow-Robin spaces

Spaces (often only potential) that surround blood vessels for a short distance as they enter the brain; their inner wall is formed by a prolongation of a membrane like the arachnoid, and the outer wall by a continuation of the pia; the intervening channel communicates with the subarachnoid space. Called also His' perivascular spaces and perivascular spaces. Calles after Rudolf Ludwig Karl Virchow and Charles Philippe Robin (French anatomist, 1821–1885).

Volkmann's contracture

Volkmann's contracture, also known as Volkmann's ischemic contracture, is a permanent flexion contracture of the hand at the wrist, resulting in a claw-like deformity of the hand and fingers. It is named after Dr. Richard von Volkmann (1830 - 1889), the 19th century German doctor who first described it, in a paper on "non-Infective Ischemic conditions of various fascial compartments in the extremities". Volkmann's contracture results from ischaemia of the muscles of the forearm. It is caused by pressure, possibly from improper use of a tourniquet, improper use of a plaster cast or from compartment syndrome. Surgery to release the fixed tissues may help with the deformity and function of the hand.

Wada test

The Wada test, also known as the "intracarotid sodium amobarbital procedure" (ISAP), is used to establish which cerebral functions are localized to which hemisphere.

Waddell's signs

Waddell's signs are a group of physical signs, first described by Waddell et al in 1984, in patients with low back pain. They are thought to be indicators of a non-organic or psychological component to pain. Historically they have been used to detect "malingering" patients with back pain.

Watson's water hammer pulse

Watson's water hammer pulse is the medical sign, which describes a pulse that is bounding and forceful, as if it were the hitting of a water hammer that was causing the pulse. This is caused by the widened pulse pressure of aortic regurgitation. Also named separately and thus also known as Corrigan's pulse.

To feel a water hammer pulse: with the patient reclining, the examiner raises the patient's arm vertically upwards. The examiner grasps the muscular part of the patient's forearm. A waterhammer pulse is felt as a tapping impulse, which is transmitted through the bulk of the muscles.

Whipple's triad

Whipple's triad or Whipple's criteria is a medical term which refers to three conditions that are considered by physicians necessary for proving hypoglycemia as the cause of a person's symptoms. They are stated in various versions, but the essential conditions are:

1) Symptoms known or likely to be caused by hypoglycemia

2) A low glucose measured at the time of the symptoms

3) Relief of symptoms when the glucose is raised to normal

Widal test

The Widal test is a serological test for Salmonella typhi.

It is a demonstration of salmonella antibodies against antigens O-somatic and H-flagellar in the blood.

It is used to ascertain the presence of typhoid fever. However, it is not a very accurate method, since we are often exposed to other bacteria (e.g. Salmonella enteritidis, Salmonella typhimurium) in this species that induce cross-reactivity; many people have antibodies against this enteric pathogens, which also react with the antigens in the Widal test, causing a false-positive result.

Other means of diagnosing Salmonella typhi (and paratyphi) include cultures of blood, urine and feces.

Winterbottom's sign

Winterbottom's sign is seen in the early phase of African trypanosomiasis, a disease caused by the parasites Trypanosoma brucei rhodiense and Trypanosoma brucei gambiense which is more commonly known as African sleeping sickness. Winterbottom's sign is the swelling of lymph nodes (lymphadenopathy) along the back of the neck, in the posterior cervical chain of lymph nodes, as trypanosomes travel in the lymphatic fluid and cause inflammation.