Asymptomatic

Pulmonary contusion due to trauma is an example of a condition that can be asymptomatic with half of people showing no signs at the initial presentation since such symptoms can take time to develop. The CT scan show a pulmonary contusion (red arrow) accompanied by a rib fracture (blue arrow).

In medicine, a disease is considered asymptomatic if a patient is a carrier for a disease or infection but experiences no symptoms. A condition might be asymptomatic if it fails to show the noticeable symptoms with which it is usually associated. Asymptomatic infections are also called subclinical infections. The term clinically silent is also used.

Knowing that a condition is asymptomatic is important because:

• It may develop symptoms later and so require watch and wait or early treatment.
• It may resolve itself or be benign.
• It is required that a person undergoes treatment so it does not cause later medical problems such as high blood pressure and hyperlipidaemia.^[1]
• Be alert to possible problems: asymptomatic hypothyroidism makes a person vulnerable to Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome or beri-beri following intravenous glucose.^[2]
• The affected person may be infectious and unknowingly spread the infection to others.

Conditions

Asymptomatic conditions may not be discovered until the patient undergoes medical tests (X-rays or other investigations). Some people may remain asymptomatic for a remarkably long period of time; such as people with some forms of cancer. If a patient is asymptomatic, precautionary steps must be taken.

A patient's individual genetic makeup may delay or prevent the onset of symptoms.

List

These are conditions for which there is a sufficient number of documented individuals that are asymptomatic that it is clinically noted. For a complete list of asymptomatic infections see subclinical infection

• Alkaptonuria
• Aortic valve stenosis
• Atrial fibrillation
• Balanitis xerotica obliterans
• Benign lymphoepithelial lesion
• Cardiac shunt
• Carotid artery dissection
• Carotid bruit
• Cavernous hemangioma
• Chloromas (Myeloid_sarcoma)
• Chronic myelogenous leukemia
• Coeliac disease
• Coronary Artery Disease
• Diabetic retinopathy
• Essential Fructosuria
• Folliculosebaceous cystic hamartoma
• Glioblastoma multiforme (occasionally)
• Glucocorticoid remediable aldosteronism
• Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency
• Hereditary elliptocytosis
• Heterophoria
• high blood pressure
• Histidinemia
• Hyperaldosteronism
• hyperlipidaemia
• Hyperprolinemia type I
• Hypothyroidism
• Hypertension
• Idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura
• Iridodialysis (when small)
• Lesch-Nyhan syndrome (female carriers)
• Levo-Transposition of the great arteries
• Meckel's diverticulum
• Microvenular hemangioma
• Mitral valve prolapse
• Monoclonal B-cell lymphocytosis
• Myelolipoma
• Optic disc pit
• Osteoporosis
• Pes cavus
• Polyorchidism
• Pre-eclampsia
• Prehypertension
• Protrusio acetabuli
• Pulmonary contusion
• Renal tubular acidosis
• Spermatocele
• Sphenoid wing meningioma
• Spider angioma
• Splenic infarction (though not typically)
• Subarachnoid hemorrhage
• Tonsillolith
• Type II diabetes
• Vaginal intraepithelial neoplasia
• Venous lake
• Wilson's disease

References

1. ^ Tattersall, R. (2001). "Diseases the doctor (or autoanalyser) says you have got". Clinical medicine (London, England) 1 (3): 230–233. PMID 11446622.  edit
2. ^ Watson, A. J.; Walker, J. F.; Tomkin, G. H.; Finn, M. M.; Keogh, J. A. (1981). "Acute Wernickes encephalopathy precipitated by glucose loading". Irish journal of medical science 150 (10): 301–303. PMID 7319764.  edit

See also

• Symptomatic
• Subclinical infection