It is important to note that health history and physical examination are essential practices in providing healthcare services. However, there are key differences when it comes to conducting them in infants, children, and adolescents as compared with adults. The points of divergence of physical examination and health history between these two groups are rooted in anatomy and physiology as well as the meaning of particular variations or abnormal findings.
Firstly, the purpose of health history and physical examination for both adults and pediatric patients are the same, which is to assess past health conditions and understand the current one, respectively. Secondly, there are core anatomic and physiological differences between the adult human bodies compared to pediatric stages. Moreover, a pediatrician must consider and account for factors of adolescent body changes, such as secondary sex characteristics (Farello et al., 2019). In younger children, their body composition and functions, such as bone structure, heart rate, and subcutaneous fat tissue, are affected. Thirdly, for the health history, a pediatrician heavily relies on a parent’s observations and interpretations, which need to be weighed against a child’s account, considering the age (Firmino et al., 2018). However, adult health history is more relied upon the patient himself or herself, adding more subjective credibility.
In conclusion, anatomy and physiology, as well as the meaning of particular variations or abnormal findings, are key differences in health history, and physical examination differs in infants, children, and adolescents as compared with adults. Although their purpose is mostly the same, a pediatrician must be competent and knowledgeable about anatomic and physiological differences depending on the age of the child or teenager. In addition, the health history recording for a child is heavily impacted by parental interpretations, whereas adult patients tend to give more reliable accounts.
References
Farello, G., Altieri, C., Cutini, M., Pozzobon, G., & Verrotti, A. (2019). Review of the literature on current changes in the timing of pubertal development and the incomplete forms of early puberty. Frontiers in Pediatrics, 7(147), 1-7. Web.
Firmino, R. T., Ferreira, F. M., Martins, C. C., Granville-Garcia, A. F., Fraiz, F. C., & Paiva, S. M. (2018). Is parental oral health literacy a predictor of children’s oral health outcomes? A systematic review of the literature. International Journal of Paediatric Dentistry, 28(5), 459-471. Web.