Bates' Guide to Physical Examination and History Taking is designed for medical, physician assistant, nurse practitioner, and other students who are learning to interview patients, perform their physical examination, and apply clinical reasoning and shared decision making to their assessment and plan, based on a sound understanding of clinical evidence. The twelfth edition has many new features to facilitate student learning. As with previous editions, these changes spring from three sources: the feedback and reviews of students, teachers, and faculty; our commitment to making the book easier to read and more efficient to use; and the abundant new evidence that supports the techniques of examination, interviewing, and health promotion. Throughout the twelfth edition, we emphasize common or important problems rather than the rare or esoteric, though at times we include unusual findings that are classic or life threatening. We encourage students to study the strong evidence base that informs each chapter and to carefully review the clinical guidelines and citations from the health care literature