Category Archives: chemistry

1. A 35-year-old woman comes to you complaining of persistent headaches that last for days at a time. She has recently lost her job. She complains that she sometimes sees flashing lights and cannot stand having anyone around her when the pain is very bad. Describe your assessment plan for this patient (migraine versus tension headache).

2. A 26-year-old man comes to you complaining of pain in his neck. The pain was evident yesterday when he got up and has not decreased significantly since then. He thinks that he may have “slept wrong.” There is no previous history of trauma. Describe your assessment plan for this patient (acquired torticollis versus cervical disc lesion).

1. A 75-year-old woman comes to you complaining primarily of neck pain but also of stiffness. She exhibits a dowager’s hump. There is no history of trauma. Describe your assessment plan for this patient (osteoporosis versus cervical spondylosis). Describe your assessment for this patient (cervical spondylosis versus tennis elbow versus double crush injury).

2. A 47-year-old man comes to you complaining of elbow and neck pain. There is no recent history of trauma, but he remembers being in a motor vehicle accident 19 years ago. He now works at a desk all day. Describe your assessment for this patient (cervical spondylosis versus tennis elbow versus double crush injury).

1. A 16-year-old boy comes to you with a complaint of having hurt his neck. While “fooling” with some friends at the lake, he ran away from them and dove into the water to get away. The top of his head hit the bottom, and he felt a burning pain. The pain decreased as he came out of the water, but he still has a residual ache. Describe your plan for this patient (cervical fracture versus cervical sprain).

2.. A 14-year-old girl comes to you complaining of neck pain. She has long hair. She states that when she “whipped” her hair out of her eyes, which she has done many times before, she felt a sudden pain in her neck. Although the pain intensity has decreased, it is….

1. A 47-year-old man comes to you complaining of pain in the left shoulder. There is no history of overuse activity. The pain that occurs when he elevates his shoulder is referred to his neck and sometimes down the arm to his wrist. Describe your assessment plan for this patient (cervical spondylosis versus subacromial bursitis).

2. An 18-year-old woman recently had a Putti-Platt procedure for a recurring dislocation of the left shoulder. When you see her, her arm is still in a sling, but the surgeon wants you to begin treatment. Describe your assessment for this patient.

1. A 68-year-old woman comes to you complaining of pain and restricted ROM in the right shoulder. She tells you that 3 months earlier she slipped on a rug on a tile floor and landed on her elbow. Both her elbow and shoulder hurt at that time. Describe your assessment plan for this patient (olecranon bursitis versus adhesive capsulitis).

2. Parents bring their 5-year-old son in to see you. They state that he was running around the recreation room chasing a friend when he tripped over a stool and landed on his shoulder. He refuses to move his arm and is crying, because the accident occurred only 2 hours earlier. Describe your assessment plan for this patient (clavicular fracture versus humeral epiphyseal injury).

2. A 35-year-old female master swimmer comes to you complaining of shoulder pain. She states that she has been swimming approximately 2000 m per day in two training sessions; she recently increased her swimming from 1500 m per day to get ready for a competition in 3 weeks. Describe your assessment plan for this patient (subacromial bursitis versus biceps tendinitis).

2. A 20-year-old male tennis player comes to you complaining that when he serves the ball, his arm “goes dead.” He has had this problem for 3 weeks but never before. He has increased his training during the past month. Describe your assessment plan for this patient (thoracic outlet syndrome versus brachial plexus lesion).

1. A 15-year-old female competitive swimmer comes to you complaining of diffuse shoulder pain. She notices the problem most when she does the backstroke. She complains that her shoulder sometimes feels unstable when doing this stroke. Describe your assessment plan for this patient (anterior instability versus supraspinatus tendinitis).

2. A 48-year-old man comes to you complaining of neck and shoulder pain. He states that he has difficulty abducting his right arm. There is no history of trauma, but he remembers being in a car accident 10 years earlier. Describe your assessment plan for this patient (cervical spondylosis versus adhesive capsulitis).

1. A 24-year-old woman comes to you complaining of pain in her right elbow on the medial side. The pain sometimes extends into the forearm and is often accompanied by tingling into the little finger and half of the ring finger. The pain and paresthesia are particularly bothersome when she plays recreational volleyball, which she enjoys very much. Describe your assessment plan for this patient (ulnar neuritis versus medial epicondylitis).

2. A 52-year-old man is referred to you with a history of right elbow pain. He complains of tenderness over the lateral epicondyle. He informs you that he has not done any repetitive forearm activity and does not play tennis. He has some restriction of neck movement. Describe your assessment plan for this patient (cervical spondylosis versus lateral….

1. A 26-year-old male football player is referred to you after surgery for a ruptured (third-degree strain) left biceps tendon at its insertion. His cast has been removed, and you have been asked to restore the patient to normal function. Describe your assessment plan for this patient.

2. Parents bring their 4-year-old daughter in to see you. They state that about 2 hours previously they were out shopping, and the mother was holding the little girl’s arm. The little girl tripped, and the mother “yanked” her up as she fell. The little girl started to cry and would not move her elbow. Describe your assessment plan for this patient (radial head dislocation versus ligamentous sprain).

1. A 46-year-old man comes to you complaining of diffuse left elbow pain. When he carries a briefcase for three or four blocks, his elbow becomes stiff and sore. When he picks up things with his left hand, the pain increases dramatically. Describe your assessment plan for this patient (lateral epicondylitis versus osteoarthritis).

2. A 31-year-old man comes to you complaining of posterior elbow pain. He says he banged his elbow on the table 10 days earlier, and he has had posterior swelling for 8 or 9 days. Describe your assessment plan for this patient (olecranon bursitis versus joint synovitis).