Assessment Techniques and Vital Signs

These flashcards cover key vocabulary and concepts related to assessment techniques, vital signs, and pain management in a clinical setting.

Assessment Techniques

Methods used to evaluate a patient's health status, including inspection, palpation, percussion, and auscultation.

Inspection

Close observation of the patient as a whole and each body system, requiring good lighting and adequate exposure.

Palpation

Use of touch to assess characteristics such as texture, temperature, and the location and size of organs.

Percussion

Tapping the patient's skin with short, sharp strokes to assess underlying structures and determine organ location, size, and density.

Tympany

a high-pitched, drum-like sound produced during abdominal percussion over air-filled structures like the stomach and intestines

Dull

A dull sound is the expected finding when percussing over solid, dense organs such as the liver, or over bone and muscle

Flat

A flat sound in percussion indicates dense underlying tissue, such as muscle or bone, and is a normal finding over these areas.

Resonance

a low-pitched, hollow tone produced by percussion of air-filled tissues, like healthy lungs

Hyperresonance

an abnormally loud, low-pitched, and hollow sound heard when tapping the chest, indicating excessive air in the thoracic cavity (ex emphasymatous lungs)

Percussion steps

Undress pt

Place middle finger of non dom hand on bare skin

Fan out rest of fingers on non dom hand

Bend wrist

Snap with middle finger of dom hand

Auscultation

Listening to body sounds, typically using a stethoscope to assess heart, lungs, and bowel sounds.

Standard Precautions

Infection prevention measures to protect healthcare workers and patients, including hand hygiene and use of personal protective equipment.

BMI (Body Mass Index)

A practical marker of healthy weight for height; used to assess obesity or malnutrition.

Vital Signs

Health indicators measured regularly, including temperature, pulse, respiration, and blood pressure.

Bradycardia

Abnormally slow heart rate, typically below 50 beats per minute.

Tachycardia

Abnormally fast heart rate, typically above 95 beats per minute.

Nociceptive Pain

Pain due to actual or potential tissue damage, signaling an injury.

Neuropathic Pain

Pain originating from nerve injury or disease, often chronic and difficult to assess.

Acute Pain

Short-term pain that typically resolves with healing of the injury.

Chronic Pain

Pain that persists for 6 months or longer, often not aligned with physical findings.

Referred Pain

Pain felt in a different location from where it originates.

Oxygen Saturation

A measure of the amount of oxygen carried by the blood, usually assessed noninvasively with a sensor.