A 45-year-old female presents with a swollen, tender, erythematous right leg from ankle to knee. She has a temperature of 37.8°C and the erythema has ...

Question

A 45-year-old female presents with a swollen, tender, erythematous right leg from ankle to knee. She has a temperature of 37.8°C and the erythema has a well-defined advancing border. She has no risk factors for DVT. What finding would most help differentiate cellulitis from DVT clinically?

Accepted Answer

Drawing a line around the advancing erythema border and reassessing after 1 hour - cellulitis has a spreading erythematous border with warmth and tenderness, whereas DVT causes non-erythematous oedema without a spreading border

Answer

D-dimer will always distinguish the two conditions

Answer

Only Doppler ultrasound can differentiate them

Answer

The patient's temperature definitively confirms cellulitis

Answer

Measuring the calf circumference is the only useful test

uk-dipimc MCQ (SBA): Cellulitis vs DVT Differentiation

A 45-year-old female presents with a swollen, tender, erythematous right leg from ankle to knee. She has a temperature of 37.8°C and the erythema has a well-defined advancing border. She has no risk factors for DVT. What finding would most help differentiate cellulitis from DVT clinically?