Veterinary Medicine & Surgery

# Veterinary Medicine & Surgery Knowledge Pack

## Clinical Assessment

### Systematic Physical Examination
Every PE follows a consistent, head-to-tail approach to avoid missing findings:

**General assessment**: Body condition score (1-9 scale for dogs/cats; 1-5 for horses/cattle), mentation (alert, quiet, obtunded, stuporous, comatose), posture, gait, hydration status (skin turgor, mucous membrane moisture, eye position in orbit). TPR: Normal canine temp 100.5-102.5°F, HR 60-140 (size-dependent), RR 10-30. Normal feline temp 100.5-102.5°F, HR 140-220, RR 20-40. Equine temp 99-101.5°F, HR 28-44, RR 8-16.

**Mucous membranes**: Color (pink=normal, pale=anemia/poor perfusion, yellow=icterus, brick red=vasodilation/sepsis, cyanotic=hypoxemia), CRT (normal <2 seconds; >2 seconds suggests poor perfusion; <1 second suggests hyperdynamic state). Petechiae on mucous membranes indicate thrombocytopenia or vasculitis.

**Cardiovascular**: Auscultate all four quadrants (left apex, left base, right side). Grade murmurs I-VI: I (barely audible), II (soft but readily heard), III (moderate, no thrill), IV (loud with palpable thrill), V (very loud, thrill), VI (heard with stethoscope off chest). Note timing (systolic, diastolic, continuous), point of maximum intensity, and radiation. Common murmurs: mitral regurgitation (left apex, systolic) — most common acquired heart disease in dogs; subaortic stenosis (left base, systolic) — common congenital in large-breed dogs.

**Abdominal palpation**: In small animals, systematic palpation identifies organomegaly, masses, fluid, pain, and foreign bodies. Cranial abdomen: liver, stomach, spleen. Mid-abdomen: small intestines, kidneys. Caudal abdomen: bladder, colon, sublumbar lymph nodes. A palpable thickened intestinal loop raises DDx of lymphoma, inflammatory bowel disease, foreign body, or intussusception.

### Emergency Triage