Red spots Assessment Questionnaire

Questions Your Doctor May Ask - and Why!

During a consultation, your doctor will use various techniques to assess the symptom: Red spots. These will include a physical examination and possibly diagnostic tests. (Note: A physical exam is always done, diagnostic tests may or may not be performed depending on the suspected condition) Your doctor will ask several questions when assessing your condition. It is important to openly share any pertinent information to help your doctor make an accurate diagnosis.

It is also very important to bring an up-to-date list of all of your all medical conditions, medications including dosages, and names of numbers of any specialist you see.

Create your printable checklist by answering questions that your doctor may ask below:

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How long have you had the red spots?
Why: to determine if acute or chronic.
Where are the red spots?
Why: e.g. hand, foot and mouth disease causes small red fluid-filled spots over the lining of the mouth and palate, on the hands, feet and occasionally in the nappy area.
Where on the body did the red spots start, and where did they spread to?
Why: e.g. rubella is characterized by a discrete red spotty rash which first appears on the face, chest and upper arms, then the abdomen and thighs.
Contact with anyone that has also had red spots?
Why: e.g. may suggest scabies, chicken pox, measles, rubella, hand foot and mouth disease or meningococcal disease.
Risk factors for meningococcal septicemia?
Why: e.g. absence of spleen, alcoholic, complement immune deficiency, highest incidence in children aged 6 months to 1 year, highest incidence in midwinter and early spring.
Past medical history?
Why: e.g. thrombocytopenia may be caused by leukemia, systemic lupus erythematosus, cirrhosis of the liver or HIV.
Medications?
Why: some medications may cause sensitivities and result in a red spotty rash such as aspirin, morphine and codeine; thrombocytopenia may be caused by heparin, quinine, sulphonamides, methyldopa, gold and rifampin.
Known allergies?
Why: e.g. food allergies, insect allergies, drug allergy.
Immunisations?
Why: e.g. rubella, measles, meningococcal.
Alcohol history?
Why: e.g. chronic excessive alcohol consumption can sometimes affect the bone marrow, cause reduced numbers of platelets and result in petechiae (small red, pin-head sized bruises).
Family history?
Why: e.g. allergies.
Occupational history?
Why: e.g. exposure to fiberglass may cause a generalized sensitivity.
Fever?
Why: may suggest chicken pox, measles, rubella, meningococcal disease.
Itch, and if so is the itch mild, moderate or severe?
Why: e.g. a very itchy red spotty rash may suggest scabies, insect bites, chicken pox.
Hemorrhagic
Why: type rash? - One of the main examples of a hemorrhagic rash is the meningococcal rash from meningococcal disease (specifically the.
Type called meningococcal septicemia). The meningococcal rash has certain particular characteristics. It often starts out looking like lots of tiny blood spots under the skin. These spots will increase over time as more under-skin bleeding occurs. Gradually, the spots become bruises, and eventually become large red-purple areas of obvious bleeding. One of the main tests of the meningococcal rash is that it does not fade under pressure. In other words, the skin does not turn whiter or go paler under pressure. Unfortunately, this is not always true in the early stages of the rash, so the rash needs to be assessed regularly to avoid a misdiagnosis in the early stages. The pressure test involves pressing on the rash to see whether it fades. One convenient way is to press on the rash with a clear see-through drinking glass, to see through the glass how the rash
Responds. Whereas most rashes from allergies or viral infections
Will fade, the meningococcal rash does not fade (except in early
Stages of the disease)
Symptoms of meningococcal septicemia?
Why: e.g. may start with cough, headache, sore throat, nausea, vomiting and then progress to spiking fevers, chills, aching joints and muscles. Later drowsiness, hemorrhagic rash most commonly on trunk and extremities but can be anywhere, and low blood pressure. May have stiff neck and dislike for light.
Symptoms of Rosacea?
Why: e.g. flushing of the face with increases in skin temperature, acne-like rash over the face. May be complicated by blepharitis, conjunctivitis, episcleritis or corneal ulcers.
Symptoms of folliculitis?
Why: e.g. pus-filled lesions around hair follicles surrounded by a red halo of inflamed skin. May occur on any hair-bearing skin such as the beard area, scalp, neck, legs and trunk.
Symptoms of rubella?
Why: e.g. low grade fever, enlarged lymph nodes in the neck and at the back of the neck, discrete red spotty rash which first appears on the face, chest and upper arms, then the abdomen and thighs. The rash lasts 1-5 days.
Symptoms of Hand-foot-and mouth disease?
Why: e.g. childhood infection characterized by a sudden onset of fever, sore throat, headache and small red fluid-filled spots over the lining of the mouth and palate, on the hands, feet and occasionally in the nappy area.

Conditions listing medical symptoms: Red spots:

The following list of conditions have 'Red spots' or similar listed as a symptom in our database. This computer-generated list may be inaccurate or incomplete. Always seek prompt professional medical advice about the cause of any symptom.

Select from the following alphabetical view of conditions which include a symptom of Red spots or choose View All.

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