Jenny, a 66-year-old retired cook, presents with a vesicular rash on the right side of her face. She experienced pain on that side 2 days ago, but thought it was just a headache.

Select one of the following case studies to address. In the subject line of your post, please identify which prompt you are responding to, for example,  #2 Carl, type 2 diabetes.

Discuss what questions you would ask the patient, what physical exam elements you would include, what further testing you would want to have performed, differential and working diagnosis, treatment plan, including inclusion of complementary and OTC therapy, referrals and other team members needed to complete patient care.

Use at least one scholarly source other than your textbook to connect your response to national guidelines and evidence-based research in support of your ideas.

In your peer replies, please reply to at least one peer who chose a different case study.

Case Studies

1. Jenny, a 66-year-old retired cook, presents with a vesicular rash on the right side of her face. She experienced pain on that side 2 days ago, but thought it was just a headache. She has been under a lot of stress lately because she is caring for her husband who has Alzheimer’s disease. What is your initial diagnosis?

2. A 48-year-old male presents with a two-month history of nighttime headaches that are becoming more frequent. The pain awakens him at night. He has no other somatic complaints and no other significant medical history. What are your initial diagnosis, differential diagnosis, and treatment plan?

3. Sally is a 22-year-old female who  recently became bothered by a rash that is itchy, red, inflamed, and dry. She also has scaly areas that she says are getting worse. The rash is only around her umbilicus and on her elbows. Both of her parents have psoriasis, but she doesn’t believe this is the problem, because it appears to be different from her parents’ lesions. She is living in Florida, is under a lot of stress in high school, and just recovered from a lingering upper respiratory infection (URI).