Paediatric abdominal examination

Do a full adult abdominal examination with the following additional components.

General

  • Dysmorphic features
  • Colour (pallor, mottling) 
  • Alertness and interest in surroundings
  • Nutritional status

Hydration status

  1. Capillary refill
  2. Heart rate
  3. Mucous membranes
  4. Skin turgor
  5. Wet nappies (depending on age)

Points

  • Look for Grey-Turner’s and Cullen’s signs
  • Liver can be up to 2cm below costal margin in children
  • Faecal loading may be felt in umbilical region and LIF

To complete

  • Observations
  • Growth charts

Learn presentations of neonatal gastrointestinal diseases

Midgut malrotation

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Duodenal atresia

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Galactosaemia

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Pyloric stenosis

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Hirschsprung’s disease

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Necrotising enterocolitis

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Tracheoesophageal fistula

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