Your health care provider will obtain a medical history from either the patient or a family member and do a physical examination.
To help better understand your agitation, your doctor may ask the following:
- type
- Is the patient more talkative than usual or is there a feeling of pressure to keep talking?
- Does the patient show increased purposeless activity (e.g., pacing, hand wringing)?
- Is the patient extremely restless?
- Is the patient trembling or twitching?
- time pattern
- Was the agitation a short episode?
- Is the agitation persistent?
- How long did it persist -- for how many day(s)?
- aggravating factors
- Does the agitation seem to be triggered by reminders of a traumatic event?
- Did you notice anything else that may have triggered agitation?
- Does the patient take any medications, in particular, steroids or thyroid medicine?
- How much alcohol does the patient drink?
- How much caffeine does the patient drink?
- Does the patient use any drugs, in particular, cocaine, narcotics, or amphetamines (speed)?
- other
- What other symptoms are also present?
- Is there confusion, memory loss, hyperactivity, or hostility (these symptoms may play an important role in diagnosis).
Diagnostic tests may include:
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