Discuss the physical assessment of a patient who presences with the complaint of cervical lymphadenopathy. What are the specific lymph nodes that you will assess? How do you palpate the lymph nodes and what are the normal versus abnormal findings? In the presence of abnormal findings, what diagnostic tests would you order and why? Also, what are the possible differential diagnoses and would your recommendations differ for adult, pediatric, and geriatric patients?
Children and adults often present with complaints of ear pain. Your differential diagnosis should include otitis media and otitis externa, in addition to other possibilities such as foreign body obstruction and cerumen impactions. Give a brief overview of otitis media and otitis externa, including signs and symptoms of the most common causative agents for both.
In addition, discuss the physical exam findings that you might see with the conditions when visualizing various parts of the ear such as ear canal or the tympanic membrane. How will your assessment of the ear differ in children versus adults? What would be essential health history questions to ask patients that present with ear pain and why? Support your answers with appropriate references.
