Disease and conditions 

Disorientation is an inability to accurately perceive time, place, or personal identity, commonly seen in organic brain disorders, cerebral anoxia, intoxication, or after severe stress.

Desault’s sign is a restricted arc of rotation of the greater trochanter, seen in intracapsular femoral fractures; the trochanter rotates only along the femoral axis, producing a smaller arc than normal hip rotation.

Depersonalization is a dissociative symptom in which an individual perceives the self as unreal or detached, sometimes feeling as if observing oneself from a distance; occurs in schizophrenia, depersonalization disorder, and occasionally in healthy individuals under stress.

Denial is an unconscious defense mechanism in which a person refuses to accept reality or facts to avoid distress; commonly seen in normal and pathological states, including the initial stage of coping with terminal illness.

Demianoff’s sign is a lumbar pain elicited by stretching the sacrolumbalis muscle; raising the extended leg in a supine patient causes pain that limits elevation, indicative of lumbago.

Delusion is a persistent false belief held despite clear evidence to the contrary; types include grandiose, paranoid, and somatic delusions, commonly seen in schizophrenia and bipolar disorders.

Delirium is an acute onset of confusion with restlessness, agitation, incoherence, and sometimes hallucinations; commonly triggered by drugs, metabolic disturbances, infections, or neurologic injury.

Delbet’s sign is a presence of normal color and temperature in a limb despite absent pulses, indicating adequate collateral circulation in the context of arterial occlusion or aneurysm.

Dawbarn’s sign is a pain on palpation of the acromial process that disappears on abduction, indicative of acute subacromial bursitis.

Darier’s sign is a whealing and itching of pigmented macules upon rubbing, indicative of urticaria pigmentosa (mastocytosis).

Dalrymple’s sign is an abnormally wide palpebral fissures due to upper eyelid retraction, commonly seen in thyrotoxicosis.

Cullen’s sign is a bluish periumbilical discoloration indicating retroperitoneal or intra-abdominal hemorrhage, commonly seen in ruptured ectopic pregnancy or hemorrhagic pancreatitis.

Cruveilhier’s sign is a swelling in the groin indicative of an inguinal hernia, detected by palpating the inguinal canal during patient coughing.

Crowing respirations is a slow, deep inspirations producing a high-pitched “crowing” sound, typically seen during the paroxysmal stage of pertussis.

Crossed extensor reflex is an extension and adduction of one leg with fanning of the toes in response to stimulation of the opposite leg. Normally present in neonates and disappears by 6 months; persistence indicates CNS lesion or anoxic brain injury.

Cowen’s sign is a jerky, consensual pupillary light reflex in which one pupil shows abrupt constriction or dilation when the other is exposed to light. This sign is associated with Graves’ disease.

Corrigan’s pulse is a jerky, bounding pulse with a rapid upstroke followed by abrupt collapse, typically detected by palpating the carotid artery with the patient’s hand elevated. It is classically associated with aortic insufficiency but may also occur in severe anemia, patent ductus arteriosus, coarctation of the aorta, and systemic arteriosclerosis.

Coopernail’s sign is a presence of ecchymoses on the perineum, scrotum, or labia, indicative of an underlying pelvic fracture.

Conversion is an altered physical function or activity mimicking an organic disorder but without an identifiable physical cause, typically arising unconsciously from psychological conflict, as seen in conversion disorder.

Conjunctival paleness is a pale appearance of the inner eyelid’s mucous membrane, indicative of anemia. Detected by gently everting the eyelid and inspecting the conjunctiva for reduced redness.

Confabulation is unintentionally fabricated or distorted memories used to fill gaps in memory, usually plausible and detailed. Commonly observed in Korsakoff’s syndrome, alcoholism, dementia, lead poisoning, and head injuries.

Compulsion is a repetitive, stereotyped behaviors performed despite awareness of their irrationality, such as constant hand washing. It is characteristic of obsessive-compulsive disorder and can occasionally occur in schizophrenia.

Complementary Opposition Sign (Grasset-Gaussel-Hoover Sign) is an increased effort in lifting a paretic leg, observed as marked downward pressure of the opposite (unaffected) leg when the patient attempts to lift the affected leg.

Comolli’s Sign is a triangular swelling over the scapula that mirrors its shape, typically indicative of a scapular fracture.

Cognitive Dysfunction is an impairment in perceiving, organizing, interpreting stimuli, and solving problems, often linked to CNS disorders, systemic illness, or unknown causes like chronic fatigue syndrome.

Codman’s sign is a shoulder pain appearing when support is withdrawn during passive abduction, indicating supraspinatus tendon rupture. The sign is positive if pain arises only as the deltoid contracts.

Clonus are repetitive, rhythmic muscle contractions triggered by sudden stretching, indicating upper motor neuron lesions or motor cortex pathway damage. Clonus may also appear during generalized tonic-clonic seizures.

Clicks are extra, brief, high-frequency heart sounds heard in systole or diastole. Ejection clicks occur soon after S1, often due to sudden distention of the aorta or pulmonary artery, or forceful valve opening, while systolic clicks, best heard at the apex, are characteristic of mitral valve prolapse.

Clenched fist sign is a placement of a clenched fist against the chest by a patient, often seen in angina pectoris, indicating the constricting or oppressive nature of substernal pain.

Cleeman’s sign is a slight linear depression or wrinkling of the skin above the patella, typically indicating a femoral fracture with overriding bone fragments.

Clavicular sign is a swelling or edema at the medial third of the clavicle, commonly associated with congenital syphilis.

Claude’s hyperkinesis sign is a increased reflex activity of weakened (paretic) muscles in response to painful stimuli, indicating upper motor neuron involvement.

Circumstantiality is a speech in which the main point is obscured by excessive, unnecessary detail; the speaker eventually returns to the point, commonly seen in schizophrenia, compulsive disorders, and organic brain disorders.

Cherry-red spot is a red circular area at the fovea centralis surrounded by a pale or grayish retina, visible on ophthalmoscopic examination; commonly associated with Tay-Sachs disease and other sphingolipidoses.

Chaddock’s sign is a reflex indicating pyramidal tract dysfunction; dorsiflexion of the great toe with fanning of other toes when the lateral foot is stroked, or wrist flexion with finger extension when the ulnar forearm is stroked. Normal in infants under 7 months.

Catatonia is a severe motor inhibition or excitation seen in psychotic disorders, manifesting as stupor (extreme immobility) or excitement (extreme agitation).

Broadbent’s sign is a visible retraction of the left posterior chest wall near the 11th and 12th ribs during systole, indicative of extensive adhesive pericarditis.

Broadbent’s inverted sign is a palpable pulsations in the left posterolateral chest wall during ventricular systole, suggestive of left atrial enlargement.

Absent or decreased breath sounds are a critical bedside finding that often signal serious pulmonary or pleural disease. Systematic auscultation, coupled with percussion and imaging, is essential to detect and treat underlying causes promptly, improving outcomes in both acute and chronic respiratory conditions.

Braunwald’s sign is a weak pulse occurring immediately after a premature ventricular contraction, suggesting idiopathic hypertrophic subaortic stenosis.