# Malaise (feeling generally unwell)

- Category: chronic
- Review status: reviewed (every claim checked against a document named on this page)
- Sources: ICPC-3 (WONCA International Classification of Primary Care, 3rd edition) class AS06 - condition scope only, no dose · No dose - referral pathway, no medicine given in primary care · Weakness and Fatigue - Clinical Methods - NCBI Bookshelf - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK326/
- Verified date: 2026-08

## Verified against

- No dose - referral pathway, no medicine given in primary care

## Treatment metadata

- No drug therapy in primary care (Recognition & Referral)

## Complete treatment card

```text
MALAISE (FEELING GENERALLY UNWELL)
Sources: ICPC-3 (WONCA International Classification of Primary Care, 3rd edition) class AS06 -
         condition scope only, no dose · No dose - referral pathway, no medicine given in primary
         care · Weakness and Fatigue - Clinical Methods - NCBI Bookshelf -
         https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK326/
Review status: REVIEWED against the source listed above  (2026-08)

1. NO DRUG THERAPY IN PRIMARY CARE (RECOGNITION & REFERRAL)[1st line]
   Adult    Malaise is a non-specific constitutional symptom that warrants a structured clinical
            evaluation to identify an underlying physical or psychological cause. Perform a detailed
            systems review, medication audit, and baseline laboratory investigations including
            complete blood count, ESR/CRP, fasting blood glucose, renal and liver function panels,
            serum electrolytes, TSH, and urinalysis. Screen systematically for red flags such as
            unexplained weight loss, night sweats, localized pain, lymphadenopathy, or severe mood
            disturbance, and avoid prescribing unguided vitamin or tonic supplements before
            completing diagnostic workup. - Refer
   Peds     Children follow the same pathway: recognise and refer. No primary-care medicine is
            implied.
   Source   No dose - referral pathway, no medicine given in primary care
   Why      Malaise is a non-specific constitutional symptom that warrants a structured clinical
            evaluation to identify an underlying physical or psychological cause. Perform a detailed
            systems review, medication audit, and baseline laboratory investigations including
            complete blood count, ESR/CRP, fasting blood glucose, renal and liver function panels,
            serum electrolytes, TSH, and urinalysis. Screen systematically for red flags such as
            unexplained weight loss, night sweats, localized pain, lymphadenopathy, or severe mood
            disturbance, and avoid prescribing unguided vitamin or tonic supplements before
            completing diagnostic workup.
   Caution  No medicine is prescribed for this in primary care - this entry is for recognition and
            referral. Anything given is decided by the service it is referred to.
            RED FLAG - Persistent malaise beyond 2 to 3 weeks, unintentional weight loss, night
            sweats, associated pallor, bleeding, or lymphadenopathy, or signs suggesting depression
            or thyroid disease.

Prices are indicative (dataset snapshot 2026-06); verify with the pharmacy.
```

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Dawaa Reference is a reference for prescribers, not a medical device, and does not replace clinical judgement.

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