Healthcare: Vital Signs

Vocabulary flashcards covering core vital sign concepts including body temperature, pulse assessment, respiration, oxygen saturation, and blood pressure principles.

Vital Signs

Measurable indicators of essential physiological functions that provide information about a person's current health status and physiologic stability.

Homeostasis

The body's ability to maintain a relatively stable internal environment despite changes in the internal or external environment.

Body Temperature

A measurement of the degree of heat of the deep tissues of the human body, resulting from the balance between heat production and heat loss.

Thermoregulation

The term used to describe the body's maintenance of heat production and heat loss.

Hypothalamus

The temperature regulator and control center of the body that coordinates mechanisms to increase or decrease heat production and heat loss.

Radiation

A mechanism of heat transfer where heat is transferred in the form of radiant energy through an empty space.

Conduction

Heat transfer through or between solids by direct contact of molecules, passing thermal energy from molecule to adjacent molecule.

Convection

Heat transfer that involves the molecular movement of fluid masses (liquid or gas) instead of direct solid-to-solid molecular contact.

Evaporation

A mechanism of heat loss involving the conversion of a liquid, such as sweat, into a gaseous vapor.

Hyperthermia

A condition defined as a body temperature above $37.5^\circ\text{C}$ ($99.5^\circ\text{F}$).

Hypothermia

A condition characterized by a core body temperature falling below $35^\circ\text{C}$.

Pulse

The palpable pressure wave produced by the ejection of blood from the heart into the arterial system.

Heart Rate

The total number of cardiac contractions occurring per minute.

Pulse Rate

The number of palpable arterial pressure waves felt per minute.

Carotid Pulse

A central pulse site located on the anterior right and left sides of the neck, routinely used during emergency CPR assessments.

Brachial Pulse

A pulse site located on the inner aspect of the upper arm, used for blood pressure measurement and CPR assessments in infants.

Radial Pulse

A pulse site located on the inner wrist at the base of the thumb, commonly used for routine pulse assessment in adults.

Popliteal Pulse

A pulse site located behind the knee, used to evaluate lower-extremity circulation.

Femoral Pulse

A central circulation pulse site located in the front between the upper leg and lower hip where the hip bends.

Dorsalis Pedis Pulse

A peripheral pulse site situated on the anterior (front) side of the foot, utilized to check foot circulation.

Posterior Tibial Pulse

A pulse site located on the inner ankle area, evaluated to assess circulation in the foot and lower leg.

Bradycardia

A resting heart rate of less than $60\,\text{beats/min}$ in adults.

Respiration

The process involving the movement of air into and out of the lungs and the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide.

Tachypnea

Rapid breathing, clinically defined in adults as a resting rate greater than $20\,\text{breaths/min}$.

Bradypnea

An abnormally slow resting respiratory rate.

Dyspnea

A subjective clinical sensation of difficult, uncomfortable, or labored breathing.

Apnea

The temporary or sustained cessation of breathing.

Hyperventilation

Ventilation that exceeds the body's metabolic demand, frequently resulting in decreased arterial $\text{CO}_2$.

Oxygen Saturation (SpO2)

A noninvasive estimate of the percentage of hemoglobin carrying oxygen in arterial blood, measured via pulse oximetry.

Systole

The phase of the cardiac cycle where the ventricles contract and eject blood into the pulmonary artery and aorta, producing the highest arterial pressure.

Diastole

The phase of the cardiac cycle where the ventricles relax and fill with blood, resulting in a decrease in arterial pressure.

S1 ("Lub")

The first heart sound, primarily associated with the closure of the atrioventricular (mitral and tricuspid) valves.

S2 ("Dub")

The second heart sound, associated with the closure of the semilunar (aortic and pulmonary) valves.

Blood Pressure

The force exerted by circulating blood against the internal walls of the arteries, typically reported in millimeters of mercury ($\text{mmHg}$).

Korotkoff Phase I

The first phase of Korotkoff sounds where clear, repetitive tapping sounds appear, identifying the systolic blood pressure reading.

Korotkoff Phase V

The final phase of Korotkoff sounds marked by the complete disappearance of sound, indicating the diastolic blood pressure in adults.

Stage 1 Hypertension

A blood pressure classification defined by a systolic reading of $130\text{--}139\,\text{mmHg}$ or a diastolic reading of $80\text{--}89\,\text{mmHg}$.

Stage 2 Hypertension

A blood pressure classification defined by a systolic reading of $\ge 140\,\text{mmHg}$ or a diastolic reading of $\ge 90\,\text{mmHg}$.

Hypotension

Abnormally low blood pressure that may produce clinical symptoms such as dizziness, fainting, weakness, and confusion.

Hypertension

Persistently elevated blood pressure, often termed "The Silent Killer" because it frequently produces no obvious symptoms while increasing cardiovascular and renal risks.