Chapter 11 - Vital Signs

Vital Meaning

essential or necessary

Vital Signs

Helps doctors diagnose diseases and evaluate how well treatments are working

Temperature

A measure of a patient’s body heat, normal temperature is 98.6 F or (37 C)

Pyrexia (fever)

caused by the body heating up to try to protect itself (100.4 F or 38C)

Locations where body temperature can be taken

Oral (most common), Rectal (most accurate), Axillary, Tympanic, Temporal arteries

Oral Temperature

Temperature taken from the mouth, thermometer placed under the tongue

Rectal Temperature

Temperature taken from the rectum

Axillary Temperature

Temperature taken from the armpit

Tympanic Temperature

Temperature taken from inside the ear, use of a tympanic thermometer that is battery-operated and has a digital display; placement of thermometer is important to get an accurate reading

Temporal artery Temperature

Temperature taken from across the temporal artery ending behind the ear.

Non-digital Thermometer

Can be used for oral, rectal, or axillary temperatures

Digital Thermometer

Used for oral, rectal, and axillary; use of a probe, has a digital display, and may be connected to a electronic unit

Mercury Thermometers

Mercury is no longer used in clinical thermometers because mercury is a toxic substance, and if a mercury thermometer breaks and releases its mercury, it could have significant negative effects on a person’s health

Temporal artery Thermometer

measure temperature of arteries on both sides of the head, are hand-held, infrared scanners with digital display, a forehead thermometer strip can also be used to take temporal artery temp

Fahrenheit normal temp

98\.6

Celsius normal temp

37

Pulse

the pressure of the blood against the wall of an artery as the heart beats, tells you how well the cardiovascular system is working, important if a patient has a heart condition or respiratory condition

Hypothermia

low body temperature (below 95 degrees F)

Pulse Locations

* Radial pulse (on the radial artery at the wrist)
* Apical pulse (taken with a stethoscope)
* Carotid pulse

Stethoscopes

Contains: two earpieces, plastic/rubber tubing, a brace that connects the tubing to the earpieces a diaphragm that magnifies the sound, a bell that can detect fainter sounds

Pulse Rate Measurements

Measured by counting the number of beats per minute, average resting pulse rates are established for different age groups

Bradycardia

a slow pulse rate of less than 60 bpm

Tachycardia

a fast pulse rate of over 100 bpm

Respiration Rate

the rate of respiration is the measurement of a patient’s breathing cycle, helps determine the level of oxygen in the blood, best to calculate immediately after pulse check, Normal respiratory rate for adults: 12 - 20 breaths per min, children/babies breath faster

Inhalation

first half of a respiration, diaphragm contracts downward, lungs expand, rib cage adjusts wider

Exhalation

Second half of respiration, diaphragm relaxes, lungs deflate, rib cage adjusts back down

Pulse Oximeter

measures how well oxygen is being used in the body, applied to the finger, uses an infrared light that passes through the body tissue, normal pulse ox %: 95 - 100

Hypoxia

a pulse ox reading below 85%

hyperventilation

breathing too quickly

hypoventilation

breathing too slowly

tachypnea

rapid, shallow breathing due to the lungs only partially filling

bradypnea

an unusually slow rate of breathing, typically under 12 breaths per minute

apnea

lack of breathing

Hypertension

may place too much pressure on the walls of the arteries

Hypotension

can mean the body is not getting enough oxygen and nutrients

Systolic

the heart muscle contracts

Diastolic

the heart muscle relaxing

Sphygmomanometer

how blood pressure levels are measured

Normal blood pressure average

120/80

Factors that affect blood pressure

diet, weight, exercise, race, time or reading. body position, cigarettes, alcohol, drugs, medication, stress, fear, or pain

manual blood pressure

needs a stethoscope and manual blood pressure cuff (sphygmomanometer)

electronic blood pressure

no need for stethoscope, just an electric blood pressure cuff

Height and weight is used for

* Nutritional Status


* Medication dosages
* General health status
* BMI

Height is measured…

in ft and inches, or in centimeters

Weight is used…

to calculate medication dosages, should be measured at the same time each day