Physical Assessment Flashcards
Why and how do we perform a thorough physical assessment?
- Define patient’s problems accurately
- History will guide scope of assessment
- Requires sound theoretical base in order to synthesise info from appropriate sources, i.e. anatomy/physiology, characteristics/limitations of assessment tools
What vital sign is the most accurate predictor of somebody who is deteriorating?
Respiratory rate
What are the cardiovascular values?
Normal heart rate: 60-100bpm Tachycardia: >100bpm Bradycardia: <60bpm Hypertension: >145/95mmHg Hypotension: <90/60mmHg
What are the temperature values?
Normal: 36.5-37.5 degrees celsius
Fever/pyrexia: Elevation in body temp above 37.5 (febrile)
What is associated with every 0.6 degree rise in body temperature?
A 10% increase in oxygen consumption
What are the respiratory rate values?
Normal: 12-20 breaths/min
Tachypnoea: >25 breaths/min
Bradypnoea: <10 breaths/min
What is the only vital sign that can be voluntarily altered?
Respiratory rate
What is a trick for measuring respiratory rate accurately?
Tell the patient you’re measuring their pulse
What are the 4 main components of physical assessment?
Observation (end of bed assessment)
Palpation
Auscultation (what you hear)
Cough
What information can you gain from observation?
- Physical location (ICU vs ward)
- Monitoring & attachments (oxygen, liners, catheters, drains)
- General appearance
- Level of consciousness
What are patients with reduced level of consciousness at risk of?
Aspiration (things other than air getting into airways) and retention of pulmonary secretions
What are the 4 levels of consciousness?
- Conscious
- Unconscious (by still responsive)
- Semiconscious (drifting in and out)
- Obtunded (unconscious, not responsive)
What are some of the causes of reduced level of consciousness?
- CO2 narcosis (very high levels of CO2)
- Medications
- Brain injury
What are the 3 components of the Glasgow Coma Scale?
Eye opening, verbal response, motor response
What is cachexia?
When a person is completely skin and bones, opposite of obesity
What general appearance features should you look for?
- Cachexia vs obesity
- Deformity
- Scars
- Barrel shaped chest (hyperinflation)
- Pectus excavatum/ pectus carinatum