Skin, Hair, Nails

Equipment Needed

• Penlight
• Ruler/tape measure
• Gloves

What to Say to the Patient

• "I'm going to look at your skin, hair, and nails now."

Inspection Steps

• Color, pigmentation, lesions
• Hair distribution and texture
• Nail shape, color, capillary refill

Palpation Steps

• Skin temperature and moisture
• Turgor
• Texture of lesions

Normal Findings

• Warm, dry, even pigmentation
• Turgor brisk
• Capillary refill < 2 sec

Abnormal Findings

• Pallor, cyanosis, jaundice
• Poor turgor (dehydration)
• Clubbing
• Suspicious lesions (ABCDE)

Common Mistakes

• Not inspecting all surfaces/skin folds
• Forgetting to check nail capillary refill

Documentation Example

Skin warm, dry, intact. No rashes or lesions. Nails without clubbing, capillary refill <2 sec.