Pt Assesment Flashcards
Acute coronary syndrome (ACS)
Abrupt disruption of flow through coronary arteries
Types: unstable angina, non-ST elevated myocardial infarction (NSTEMI), STEMI
ACS common chief complaints
Chest discomfort, dyspnea (difficulty breathing), fainting, palpitations, fatigue
Angina Pectoris
Chest discomfort due to heart not receiving enough O2
Myocardial Ischemia (AMI)
Myocardial Ischemia symptoms
Angina pectoris
Pain worsens w/ exercise, resolves w/ rest
Starts in left chest and radiates (especially left little fingers)
Severe ischemia results in pain to right arm
Aortic dissection or enlargement of aortic aneurism symptoms
Pain in center of chest and radiates back
Medications/procedures used to open up coronary artieries
Reperfusion therapy
Anginal symptoms length vs AMI length
Angina <20 min
AMI >20 min, can last hours
Reasons for sudden dyspnea
Pulmonary embolism, pneumothorax, acute pulmonary edema, pneumonia, airway obstruction
Reasons for dyspnea on exertion
COPD, left ventricle failure (LVF)(causes fluid build up in lungs)
Reasons for dyspnea due to horizontal positioning
Chronic heart failure (blood pools in lungs),
Dyspnea relieved by changing body position
Orthopnea
Sudden onset of dyspnea causes pt to wake from sleep, associated with what?
Paroxysmal nocturnal dyspnea (PND)
Associated with LVF
Cardiac causes of syncope (fainting)
Dysrhythmias, increased vagal tone, heart lesion,
Common causes of fatigue
High/low potassium, ACS, meds,
Skin (low CO, heart attack, shock)
Low cardiac output - pale, mottled, cyanotic
Heart attack/cardio shock - cool, sweaty
JVD (pressure rise/fall)
Pressure rise: right ventricle fail, more pressure in pericardial sac hinders return of blood to right atrium
Lowers: blood volume falls, ejection of blood from left ventricle
Barrel Chest symptom
COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)
Cardio crackles and wheezing
LVF w/ pulmonary edema (foamy blood tinged sputum)
Bilateral pitting edema, pitting in one side causes
Swelling in low points of body
RVF
One side pitting suggests blockage in major vein
Different PR when listening to heart and palpating radial pulse, sign of?
Pulse deficit
Abnormal heart rhythms, contractions too weak
When systolic pressure falls more than 10 mmHg during inspiration, symptom of?
Pulses paradoxus
AMI, cardiac tamponade, constrictive pericarditis
Compression of heart due to fluid in sac, symptoms,
Cardiac tamponade - keeps heart from properly filling
Pain in chest, fatigue, narrow pulse pressure, low BP, palpitations, high HR
Beat to beat difference in strength of pulse, symptom of?
Pulses alternans
Severe ventricle failure - decrease in # of myocardial cell contracting in each beat