Symptom

(from the Greek σύμπτωμα meaning 'chance', 'mishap' or 'casualty', itself derived from συμπιπτω meaning 'to fall upon' or 'to happen to'), with two similar meanings in the context of physical and mental health, both referring to noticeable adjuncts to a disease state
 * 1) strictly, a sensation or change in health function experienced by a patient, allowing the loose classification into strong, mild or weak
 * 2) in loose usage, a medical sign of a disease

Description
In the medically correct sense of the word, a symptom is a subjective report, as opposed to a sign, which is objective evidence of the presence of a disease or disorder. Examples of symptoms are fatigue/tiredness, pain, or nausea, as they can only be directly perceived by the patient. In contrast, elevated blood pressure, or abnormal appearance of the retina, would be a medical sign indicating the nature of the disease. In loose usage, a symptom may be said to be a physical condition which indicates a particular illness or disorder (e.g. Longman, 1995), with a rash as an example of a symptom in this sense of the word. However, correctly speaking, this is a medical sign, as would be any indication detectable by a person other than the sufferer without verbal information from the patient.