Differential diagnosis

Differential diagnosis is when a doctor (or another type of healthcare professional) tries to figure out which medical problem is causing a person's medical symptoms. They do this by listening to the person's medical history, asking questions, doing tests, and making observations. The doctor will then look at all the information they have to make a list of possible medical problems that could be causing the person's symptoms. This list is called a differential diagnosis. After looking at the list, the doctor will usually decide which one of those medical problems is most likely causing the person's problems.