36814 - General Surgery 1

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course the student knows the general and essential aspects of pathophysiology as regards the need for knowledge of the surgical approach to medical practice. On the basis of the knowledge acquired, the student will have the methodological principles that will allow him to identify those aspects that identify the area of surgical interest and the pathophysiological reasons that underlie it. The student will also be able to correctly and autonomously deal with the semiological approach to the surgical patient using the principles of objective evaluation and the physical approach in relation to the knowledge of investigation procedures typical of clinical methodology. The integration between the knowledge of clinical pathophysiology and surgical semiotics makes the student able to understand and address the elementary bases of diseases in a preparatory manner for the future development of the course of study.

Course contents

•Learn how to take a medical history and do a physical examination in the surgical patient
•Learn to apply anatomical/physiological knowledge in daily clinical practice
•Learn how to make an early diagnosis of an acute abdominal condition
•Learn to make a differential diagnosis between the main pathologies of surgical interest
•Learn to exercise critical judgment and gather up-to-date scientific information
•Learn about the most frequently used diagnostic methods in daily practice
•Learn the basic rules for attendance in a surgical department
•Learn to present a clinical case

COURSE PROGRAM

1. Introduction to the course

2. Initial approach to the patient with surgical conditions: from medical history to physical examination

3. Pathophysiology and semiotics of abscesses, phlegmons, wounds, and tissue disruptions. Objective and functional alterations in the presence of lesions and inflammatory processes of soft tissues

4. Principles of early diagnosis in acute abdominal diseases: visceral pain and parietal pain

5. Abdominal examination in the patient with acute abdomen

6. Diagnostic reasoning: linking signs and symptoms

7. Main diagnostic tests to request in a patient with acute abdominal pain

8. Acute appendicitis and differential diagnosis with conditions mimicking appendicitis in males and females

9. Perforated gastric or duodenal ulcer

10. Acute pancreatitis

11. Acute cholecystitis, biliary colic, obstructive jaundice, and other right upper quadrant pathologies

12. High and low intestinal obstruction

13. Acute diverticulitis

14. Gastrointestinal bleeding (upper and lower)

15. Inguinal hernias and incisional hernias

16. Semiotics of the main acute proctologic conditions (hemorrhoids, fissures, abscesses, and anal fistulas)

17. General semiotics and diagnosis of major breast diseases

Readings/Bibliography

Cope's Early Diagnosis of the Acute Abdomen. 22nd Edition. Revised by William Silen; Oxford University Press.

Bates' Guide To Physical Examination and History Taking. Lynn S. Bickley

Educational material on patient physical examination (texts and videos) available on "Jove Unlimited" Online access available for medical students in Bologna on Unibo-Proxy

Educational material published on "Unibo virtuale"

Teaching methods

Lectures with interactive clinical cases and dialogue with students.


Instructional video presentations.

Assessment methods

Oral examination. The final grade is the average of the grades reported in the respective parts of the Integrated Course ("Clinical Methodology and Medical Systematics").

To pass the exam, a passing grade is required in all parts.

The "grade" varies from 18 to 30 cum laude, based on the outcome of the exam.

If the student does not demonstrate adequate preparation, he will not pass the exam.

Office hours

See the website of Giampaolo Ugolini