General
o sign to q sign
What does o sign to q sign mean?
Shorthand for a deteriorating trajectory: a patient progressing from the O sign (mouth open) to the Q sign (tongue lolling) and onward to death.
"He slid from O sign to Q sign over the night shift."
Origin
Combines the O and Q sign slang into a prognostic continuum.
Frequently asked questions
What does 'O sign to Q sign' mean?
It describes a deteriorating patient moving from the O sign (mouth hanging open in an O shape) to the Q sign (tongue lolling out, making a Q), and onward toward death.
What is the O sign?
Grim slang for an unresponsive patient lying with the mouth open in an O shape; the Q sign adds the tongue protruding.
Is this a serious clinical term?
No. It is dark gallows-humour prognostic slang, not formal terminology, used privately among critical-care staff.
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