Tremors or vibrations in an area of the body, detected by palpating (feeling) with the fingers or the hand or by auscultation (listening). The procedure is most commonly used when examining the chest and assessing what happens when the patient breathes, coughs or speaks. This helps the doctor to diagnose whether disorders such as fluid in the pleural cavity or solidification of a section of the lung have occurred.

Friction fremitus is a grating feeling communicated to the hand by the movements of lungs or heart when the membrane covering them is roughened, as in PLEURISY or PERICARDITIS. Vocal fremitus is the sensation felt by the hand when a person speaks, and is increased when the lung is more solid than usual. On test for vocal fremitus is to ask the patient to ‘say 99’ while listening to the chest with a stethoscope. The ‘thrills’ felt over a heart affected by valvular disease are also varieties of fremitus.