The Complete History and Physical Exam Guide by Eric H. Hanson, Thomas S. Neuhauser

Product Details

Synopsis

This concise, portable manual offers detailed guidance on developing and refining the skills required to take an accurate patient history and conduct a thorough physical examination. 48 specialty-trained physicians cover all 28 medical specialties, enabling the reader to obtain the most conclusive diagnostic information from each patient in any clinical setting. A clear, consistent outline format with at-a-glance charts, tables and boxes makes reference quick and easy. Specific guidelines detail each step for every type of physical examination, with up to three different approaches for each body system. Sample write-ups at the beginning of each chapter provide a starting point for documentation. Readers will also find easy-to-follow information on • chartwork • diagnostic studies and interpretation of laboratory results • imaging interpretation • and common bedside procedures.

• Uses an easy-to-review outline format that covers history and physical examination • chartwork
• Covers history and physical examination guidelines for subspecialty areas.
  
• Provides in-depth, ready-to-use questions that highlight all key potential health issues when taking a patient's history.
  
• Details each step for every type of system review, with up to three different approaches for each body system.
  
• Offers sample write-ups at the end of each chapter to provide a starting point for documentation.
  
• Addresses additional "must-know" content including ethical and legal issues.
  
• Includes coverage of drugs in an abbreviated outline format, and appendices with conversion and data tables.

Doody Review Services

Reviewer:Patricia Wong, MD(Stanford University Medical Center)
Description:All medical students, interns, and physician extender type professionals should run to their nearest medical book store and buy this book. I regret that such a wonderful resource was not available when I attended medical school. This fantastic bulky paperback details how to take a history and do a physical for all subspecialties. Superb examples of medical documentation are provided and the authors mention exactly what you should be looking for on exam and what you should be thinking of when taking a history. This is how to become an excellent clinician and not be numbed by performing perfunctory physicals and becoming oblivious to all the signs we should always be on the alert for. An abundance of valuable tables of signs and symptoms and the underlying pathology denoted are included throughout the book. The language of each subspecialty is demystified and for the first time I understand what the cryptic ophthalmologic notes mean.
Purpose:The purpose is to provide a thorough education in the performance and synthesis of the history and physical examination.
Audience:The audience is medical students (who should begin studying the book as soon as they begin their clinical rotations), physician assistants, interns, nurse practitioners. All fields of medicine are covered.
Features:The clinical discussion of abnormal findings for every part of the body is outstanding. How to examine the body correctly and synthesize this information into formulating a diagnosis is covered in a way I have not seen in other textbooks. This is a fantastic buy for $30.This book is incomparable in this area and the authors are to be saluted for producing such a great book. It should be purchased for all medical libraries and be required reading for all medical students.
Assessment:This is the only book you will ever need for learning about taking a history (incredible comprehensive questions for taking a history on all organ systems — you will miss very few diagnoses if you learn the material in this book). Prior to seeing this book, I liked Bates' Guide to Physical Examination and History Taking, 8th edition (Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2003). Now I think of this new book as Bates' and Degowins' (DeGowin's Diagnostic Examination, 7th edition (McGraw-Hill, 2000)) and Snell (Clinical Anatomy, 7th edition (Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2004) rolled up into one and much easier to digest.

Biography

Headquarters United States Air Force, Office of the Surgeon General, Directorate of Modernication, Science and Technology Division, Chief, Science and Technology and Operational Biotechnology, Bolling Air Force Base, Washington, DC

Staff Pathologist, Medical Directory of Hematology, Wilford Hall Medical Center, Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio, TX