Lab - Respiratory Exam Flashcards
Respiratory Physical Exam: Inspection. What do you look at first?
Assess for Respiratory Distress:
- Tachypnea
- (>25 breaths/minute)
- Cyanosis (Blue in color) or Pallor (Pale in color)
- Audible sounds of breathing Using accessory muscle to breathe (SCM, Scalenes, intercostal)
Deviated Trachea
Increased AP chest diameter (Seen in COPD)
Tripod Posture : Patient with obstructive lung disorders
will tend to sit leaning forward with
shoulders elevated
Respiratory Physical Exam - landmarks to look for?
-
Anterior/mid/posterior-axillary line:
The anterior and posterior axillary lines drop vertically from the anterior and posterior axillary folds. The mid-axillary line drops from the apex of the axilla -
Mid-sternal line & Midclavicular line:
Mid-sternal line drops from suprasternal notch. Midclavicular line drops vertically from the midpoint of the clavicle
Resp Physical Exam Inspection: Digital Clubbing
Digital Clubbing: swelling of soft tissue at nail base. Loss of normal angle between nail and proximal nail fold (>180 degrees) leading to a spongy or floating feeling.
- Can be seen in:
Congenital heart disease, Interstitial lung disease, Bronchiectasis, Pulmonary fibrosis, Lung abscess, Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), Malignancies (lung cancer, and cystic fibrosis
Resp Physical Exam : what do you look for to evaluate Respiration
Rate, Rhythm, Depth, Effort (Look for sternal retractions and use of accessory muscles)
Resp Physical Exam : Palpation - TART
· Trachea
· Lymph nodes
· Thoracic Muscles
· T-spine
o Viscerosomatics T1-7
· Landmarks:
o Suprasternal Notch
o Xyphoid process
o Sternal Angle (Angle of Louis)
§ Where 2nd rib meets with
the manubrium and the
body of sternum ·
Resp Physical Exam - Ribs: TART
Ribs
o Thoracic Expansion
o Chapmans points:
§ Upper lung 3rd Intercostal space
§ Lower Lung 4th intercostal space
Somatic Dysfunction
Resp Physical Exam: Percussion establishes whether underlying tissues are _____
· Air-filled
· Fluid-filled
· Solid
Percussion of the chest - where?
Pathologic examples of when dullness replaces resonance (percussion)
· Lobar pneumonia (alveoli filled with fluid and blood cells)
· Pleural accumulations
· Effusion (serous fluid)
· Hemothorax (blood)
· Empyema (pus)
Fibrous tissue or tumor
Pathologic examples of generalized hyperresonance (percussion)
· COPD/Emphysema
· Asthma
Pathologic examples of unilateral hyperresonance (percussion)
· Large pneumothorax
· Large air-filled bulla in lung
Resp Physical Exam: auscultation
Listen with the diaphragm of the stethoscope:
· Instruct pt to breath deeply through an open mouth
· Compare sides in a ladder like fashion
Normal Breath Sounds: Vesicular
-
Vesicular
- Soft and low pitched
- Heard through inspiration and about 1/3 of expiration
- Heard over most of lungs (parenchyma)
Normal Breath Sounds: Bronchovesicular
-
Bronchovesicular
- Intermediate in intensity and pitch
- Heard equally in inspiration and expiration
- Heard best in 1st and 2nd interspaces anteriorly and between the scapulae
Normal Breath Sounds: Bronchial
-
Bronchial
- Loud and high pitched
- Expiratory sounds heard longer than inspiratory
- Heard best over manubrium (larger proximal airways)