Cardiology Flashcards
What is Dressler’s Syndrome?
Pericarditis caused by an immune response following injury to the heart.
Symptoms include:
- Chest pain
- Fever
What is Levine’s Sign?
A clenched fist held over the chest to describe ischemic chest pain.[1] As the referred pain associated with ischemia radiates to the area of the left proximal forelimb, the right, unaffected arm is used to produce the gesture.
What is Beck’s Triad?
Low arterial blood pressure, distended neck veins, and distant, muffled heart sounds.
Indicative of Acute Cardiac Tamponade.
What is Kussmaul’s Sign?
Paradoxical rise in jugular venous pressure (JVP) on inspiration. It can be seen in some forms of heart disease and is usually indicative of limited right ventricular filling due to right heart failure.
What is Trousseau’s Sign?
Spasming of the forearm as the result of placing a blood pressure cuff on the upper arm and inflating above the systolic blood pressure. This is a sign of Hypocalcemia.
What is Chvostek’s Sign?
Refers to an abnormal reaction to the stimulation of the facial nerve. When the facial nerve is tapped at the angle of the jaw (i.e. masseter muscle), the facial muscles on the same side of the face will contract momentarily (typically a twitch of the nose or lips) because of hypocalcemia (i.e. from hypoparathyroidism, pseudohypoparathyroidism, hypovitaminosis D) with resultant hyperexcitability of nerves.
What is Virchow’s Triad?
Describes the three broad categories of factors that are thought to contribute to thrombosis.
Hypercoagulability Hemodynamic changes (stasis, turbulence) Endothelial injury/dysfunction
What does SVR measure?
After-load of the left side of the heart.
The resistance the left ventricle must overcome to pump blood through the systemic circulation. As peripheral blood vessels constrict, the SVR increases.
What is after-load?
After-load is the tension or stress developed in the wall of the left ventricle during ejection. In other words, it is the end load against which the heart contracts to eject blood. Afterload is readily broken into components: it is the aortic pressure the left ventricular muscle must overcome to eject blood.
What are the normal values for monitoring PAP?
15-25/8-15 mmHg
How does Angiotensin II impact the cardiovascular system?
Increases both pre-load and after-load.
What is another name for a Pulmonary Artery Catheter (PAC)?
Swan-Ganz Catheter
What are the benefits of the Pulmonary Artery Catheter?
- Guides fluid administration
- Evaluates the patients’ immediate response to treatment.
- Evaluates the effectiveness of cardiovascular function.
At what mmHg should the IV infusion pressure bag be maintained at for the PAC?
300 mmHg
What is normal ejection fraction (EF)?
55-75%
