Which modality is included in the secondary assessment's 'physical exam' step?

• A. Vital signs
• B. Look for DCAP-BTLS during the physical exam
• C. Inspection, palpation, auscultation, look for DCAP-BTLS
• D. Imaging studies

Answer: (C)

In the secondary assessment, the physical exam relies on the three core modalities: inspection (looking at the body for obvious injuries), palpation (feeling for tenderness, deformities, swelling), and auscultation (listening for abnormal sounds). While performing this thorough head-to-toe exam, clinicians also actively look for injuries using the DCAP-BTLS framework, which stands for Deformities, Contusions, Abrasions, Punctures, Burns, Tenderness, Lacerations, Swelling. Putting these together—inspection, palpation, auscultation, and DCAP-BTLS—gives a complete approach to identifying injuries during the physical exam.

Imaging studies are not part of the physical exam itself; they’re diagnostic tools used after the exam if needed. Vital signs are important data collected during the secondary assessment, but they are not the physical exam modalities themselves. Therefore, the option that includes all three modalities plus DCAP-BTLS best matches how the physical exam is conducted in the secondary assessment.