Pathoplasticity

DEFINITION

• Pathoplasticity is the “variability in a symptom’s specific form and content, shaped by events in a patient’s life.”[1]
• Pathoplastic features are differentiated from pathognomonic features, which are specifically distinctive or characteristic of a disease or pathologic condition.
  • The clinician can make a diagnosis based on pathognomonic signs and symptoms, but pathoplastic features by definition can vary between individuals with the same diagnosis.