Nursing Assessment Flashcards
What are the four assessment techniques used in a physical examination?
- inspection
- palpation
- percussion
- auscultation
Palpation (size consistency, texture, location & tenderness):
What does the palm of the hand/fingertips assess?
- consistency of tissue
- alignment and intactness is structures
- symmetry of body parts or movements
- transmission of sound and fine vibrations
Palpation: (size consistency, texture, location & tenderness)
Back of the hand assesses…
Skin temperature
Palpation: (size consistency, texture, location & tenderness)
Ulnar surface of the fingers assesses…
texture, moisture, masses, organ position, and area of tenderness
Percussion (location, size or density):
What are the four types of percussion sounds?
- tympanic - drum-like; high pitched, loud Ex of cause: gastric bubble - resonant - hollow; low-pitched, loud Ex of cause: healthy lungs - flat - dull/muted; high-pitched, soft Ex of cause: bone - dull - thud-like; medium-pitched, soft Ex of cause: liver
- A flat/dull sound indicates presence of a solid mass under the surface
- A tympanic/resonant sound indicates hollow, air-containing structures
Auscultation:
High-pitched tones are best heard with the _______ of the stethoscope, while low-pitched tones are best heard with the ____ of the stethoscope.
Diaphragm; bell
Cardiovascular System (CV) What is the primary purpose of the CV system? What does it encompass?
- To move nutrients, gases, and wastes to and from cells.
- It encompasses the neck vessels, heart and peripheral vascular system.
Systolic pressure is the _______ ________ of the heart
Diastolic pressure is the _______ ______ in the heart’s ventricles
The difference b/w the systolic and diastolic pressure is called the _____ ______, which represents the force that the heart generates each time it contracts
- maximal contraction
- resting pressure
- pulse pressure
Heart & Pericardium:
Pulsations, or the apical impulse, may be visible in the _th or _th intercostal space at the left midclavicular
4th or 5th
Heart & Pericardium: What is a... - Thrill - Heave * there should never be any palpable heaves or thrills over the apex
- thrill - palpable murmur that feels similar to a cat purring. Thrills are always associated with murmurs.
- heave - upward displacement of the chest against the hand; best felt with the heel of the hand at the sternal border; heaves have various associations
Heart & Pericardium:
Murmurs are turbulence, or a gentle blowing or swooshing sound, caused by:
- a change in the velocity of blood flow
- a structural defect in the valves
- an unusual opening in the cardiac chambers
Heart & Pericardium: Grading of Murmurs I - II - III - IV - V - VI -
I - barely audible
II - clearly audible, but faint
III - moderately loud; easy to hear with stethoscope
IV - loud; associated with a thrill palpable on the chest wall
V - very loud; heard with stethoscope partially lifted off the chest wall
VI - loudest; heard with entire stethoscope liften off the chest wall
Heart & Pericardium: Strengths of pulses: 0 = 1+ = 2+ =
0 = absent 1+ = decreased 2+ = normal
What does PERRLA stand for?
Pupils equal, round, reactive to light and accommodation
The skin carriers out 7 major functions, what are they?
- maintaining an internal environment by acting as a barrier to loss of water and electrolytes
- protection from external agents that could injure the internal environment
- regulation of body heat
- acting as a sense organ for touch, temperature, and pain
- self-maintenance and wound repair
- production of vit D
- delayed hypersensitivity reaction to foreign substances
Integumentary System: Possible meaning for having... - Jaundice skin - Pale yellow skin tone - Flushed, red face - Pale
- liver problem, biliary tract disease
- renal problem
- excessive ETOH intake, fever, localized inflammation, embarrassment
- circulatory problem
What is clubbing (& I ain’t talking the dancing clubs lol!)?
Loss of normal angle b/w nail and nail bed d/t chronic oxygen deprivation