2 Flashcards
is the act of striking the body surface to elicit
sounds that can be heard or vibrations that can be
felt.
PERCUSSION
the nurse strikes the area to be
percussed directly with the
pads of two, three, or four
fingers or with the pad of
the middle finger.
Direct Percussion
two
hands are used and the
plexor strikes the finger of
the examiner’s other hand,
which is in contact with the
body surface being percussed (pleximeter).
Indirect Percussion
is an extremely dull sound produced by
very dense tissue, such as muscle or bone. It reflects
the most dense tissue (the least amount of air)
Flatness
is a thud like sound produced by dense
tissue such as the liver, spleen, or heart.
Dullness
is a hollow sound such as that
produced by lungs filled with air
Resonance
– is not produced in the normal
body. It is described as booming and can be heard
over an emphysematous lung
Hyperresonance
– is a musical or drum like sound produced
from an air-filled stomach. It reflects the least dense
tissue (the greatest amount of air)
Tympany
– loudness or softness of a
sound.
Amplitude (or intensity)
– the number of vibrations or
cycles per second, written as “cps.”
. Pitch (or frequency) –
a subjective difference in a sound’s
distinctive overtones.
Quality (timbre)
the length of time the note lingers
. Duration
is listening to sounds produced by parts of the body, such as the heart and blood vessels, the lungs, and
the abdomen.
AUSCULTATION
is performed using the
unaided ear, for example, to listen to a
respiratory wheeze or the grating of a
moving joint
Direct auscultation
is performed using a
stethoscope, which transmits sounds to the
nurse’s ears
Indirect auscultation
most often because
its flat edge is best for hearing high-pitched
sounds: breath, bowel, and normal heart
sounds.
Diaphragm
has a deep, hollow, cuplike
shape. It is best for soft, low-pitched sounds
such as extra heart sounds or murmurs.
Bell
