Symptom

A symptom is a subjective experience of illness reported by the person experiencing it. It differs from a sign, which can be observed or measured by someone else.

Sign (medicine): A finding of disease that another person can observe or measure. A sign is externally detectable, while a symptom is experienced and reported.
Symptom assessment: The structured evaluation of a person's reported symptoms. Assessment turns a broad complaint into clinically useful detail.
Pain: An unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage. Pain is a common symptom whose intensity and meaning are reported by the person experiencing it.
Symptom burden: The combined severity and impact of symptoms on a person's life. A symptom's importance depends not only on its intensity but also on its cumulative effects.
Syndrome: A recognizable pattern of symptoms and signs that occur together. A syndrome groups symptoms with other findings into a recurring clinical pattern.
Chief complaint: The main concern that prompts a person to seek medical care. It identifies the symptom or concern that anchors an encounter.
Dyspnea: The subjective sensation of breathing discomfort or difficulty. Breathlessness illustrates why subjective symptoms cannot be reduced to measurements alone.
Somatic symptom disorder: A mental disorder involving distressing physical symptoms and excessive thoughts, feelings, or behaviors related to them. It highlights the challenge of addressing distress without dismissing symptoms as unreal.
Disease: A condition that disrupts normal bodily or mental function. Symptoms can be manifestations of disease, but do not by themselves establish its cause.
Medical history: A record of a person's past and present health information. History places a symptom in the context of prior conditions and events.

Linked from 12 pages