chapter 2 Lesion Description/Terminology............................
DEFINITION/OVERVIEW
The skin is the largest organ of the body; evaluating it in health and in disease can be
overwhelming.
An organized approach to the definition and recording of dermatologic lesions is help-
ful for the diagnosis and the monitoring of patients.
From the macroscopic pattern to the specific lesion type, with an accurate description,
an overall picture should emerge.
Dermatologic diseases are often recurrent conditions: concise documentation in the
record of the history and physical findings permits formulation of the differential list
leading to a final diagnosis.Most electronic medical records limit record keeping to word descriptions of lesions;
concise and accurate depictions require understanding of lesions and their causes.
Practitioners should familiarize themselves with common dermatologic terminology
to “paint a picture” with words.
Example of a typical case description of flea allergic dermatitis might read: dorsal
lumbosacral patch of alopecia with papules, crusts, excoriations, and lichenification.
DERMATOLOGIC TERMINOLOGY
Terms to describe the overall hair coat:
Shiny
Dull
Oily
Dry
Brittle
Thick
Thin/hypotrichosis (partial alopecia)
Absent (alopecia)
Color:
Generalized changes from normal
Associated with specific colored hair.
Blackwell’s Five-Minute Veterinary Consult Clinical Companion: Small Animal Dermatology, Third Edition.
Karen Helton Rhodes and Alexander H. Werner.
©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Published 2018 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
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