Symptom
196967
225628464
2008-07-14T17:05:22Z
TXiKiBoT
3171782
robot Adding: [[bs:Simptom]]
{{expert-portal|Health}}
A '''symptom''' (from [[Greek language|Greek]] ''σύμπτωμα'') is a departure from normal function or feeling which is noticed by a patient, indicating the presence of disease or abnormality. A symptom is subjective,<ref>[http://www.uwo.ca/pathol/glossary.html#S Pathology - Glossary<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> observed by the patient,<ref>[http://www.emedicine.com/asp/dictionary.asp?keyword=symptom eMedicine/Stedman Medical Dictionary Lookup!<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> and not measured.<ref name="pmid1479160">{{cite journal |author=Devroede G |title=Constipation--a sign of a disease to be treated surgically, or a symptom to be deciphered as nonverbal communication? |journal=[[J. Clin. Gastroenterol.]] |volume=15 |issue=3 |pages=189–91 |year=1992 |pmid=1479160 |doi=10.1097/00004836-199210000-00003}}</ref>
==Types==
Symptoms may be [[Chronic (medical)|chronic]], [[Relapse|relapsing]] or [[remission (medicine)|remitting]]. They also may progressively worsen or progressively become better ([[convalescence]]). Conditions may also be classified as symptomatic (present and demonstrating symptoms) or asymptomatic (present but without symptoms). Asymptomatic conditions exist for years undiagnosed and may only be found upon medical testing (such as [[Hypertension|high blood pressure]]).
Constitutional or general symptoms are those that are related to the systemic effects of a disease (e.g., fever, malaise, anorexia, weight loss). They affect the entire body rather than a specific organ or location.
The terms "chief complaint", "presenting symptom", or "presenting complaint" are used to describe the initial concern which brings a patient to a [[physician|doctor]]. The symptom that ultimately leads to a [[diagnosis]] is called a "cardinal symptom".
==Possible causes==
Some symptoms occur in a wide range of disease processes, whereas other symptoms are fairly specific for a narrow range of illnesses. For example, a sudden [[blindness|loss of sight]] in one [[eye]] has a significantly smaller number of possible causes than [[nausea]] does.
Some symptoms can be misleading to the patient or the medical practitioner caring for them. For example, [[cholecystitis|inflammation of the gallbladder]] often gives rise to pain in the right shoulder, which may understandably lead the patient to attribute the pain to a non-abdominal cause such as muscle [[strain (injury)|strain]].
==Symptom versus sign==
A symptom can more simply be defined as any feature which is noticed by the patient. A sign is noticed by the doctor or others. It is not necessarily the ''nature'' of the sign or symptom which defines it, but ''who'' observes it.
The same feature may be noticed by both doctor and patient, and so is at once both a sign and a symptom. A sign or a symptom may be one, the other, or both, depending on the observer(s).
Some features, such as pain, can only be symptoms. A doctor cannot feel a patient's pain. Others can only be signs, such as a [[complete blood count|blood cell count]] measured by a doctor or a [[laboratory]].
==See also==
*[[:Category:Symptoms]]
*[[List of medical symptoms]]
*[[Pathogenesis]]
*[[Symptomatic treatment]]
==References==
<references/>
{{Symptoms and signs}}
[[Category:Medical terms]]
[[Category:Symptoms|Symptoms]]
[[Category:Greek loanwords]]
[[ar:عرض (طب)]]
[[ast:Síntoma]]
[[bs:Simptom]]
[[bg:Симптом]]
[[cs:Symptom]]
[[da:Symptom]]
[[de:Symptom]]
[[et:Sümptom]]
[[es:Síntoma]]
[[eo:Simptomo]]
[[eu:Sintoma]]
[[fa:نشانههای بیماری]]
[[fr:Symptôme]]
[[io:Simptomo]]
[[it:Sintomo]]
[[he:תסמין]]
[[lt:Simptomas]]
[[hu:Tünet]]
[[nl:Symptoom]]
[[ja:症候学]]
[[no:Symptom]]
[[nn:Symptom]]
[[pl:Objaw (medycyna)]]
[[pt:Sintoma]]
[[ru:Симптом]]
[[simple:Symptom]]
[[sl:Simptom]]
[[sr:Симптом]]
[[sh:Simptom]]
[[fi:Oire]]
[[sv:Symptom]]
[[th:อาการ]]
[[vi:Triệu chứng]]
[[tr:Belirti]]
[[uk:Симптом]]
[[yi:סימפטאם]]
[[zh:症狀]]