Stethoscope

Rhabdomyolysis is a severe syndrome caused by a direct or indirect skeletal muscle injury. The damage sustained results in the muscle fibres releasing calcium, creatine, potassium and other proteins and ions into the bloodstream [1]. High levels of blood potassium, known as hyperkalemia, can result in kidney failure and cardiac arrest. Severe muscle trauma can also cause damage and leakage of blood vessels, resulting in an increased level of pressure within the muscle compartments [2]. This…

abnormal (adventitious). Breath sounds can indicate problems within the lungs, such as obstructions, inflammation, or infection (Kahn, 2012). Normal breath sounds are heard by using a stethoscope and it sounds like air when a person breathes. There are four abnormal breathing sounds that can be heard with a stethoscope; rhonchi (snoring sounds), rales (clicking, rattling, bubbling), wheezing (high-pitched whistling), and stridor (harsh, vibratory sound). Rales occur when air opens up spaces…

As a Critical Access Hospital (CAH), we serve those who have difficulty accessing specialist services and per the American Hospital Association “approximately 20 percent of Americans live in rural areas” (American Hospital Association, 2015), that have breaks in specialist care availability. That is where telemedicine could improve the patient’s quality of care, and their ability to access this quality care without causing issues that complicate their health or financial situation. Telemedicine…

variations in pressure oscillations due to arterial wall movement below the cuff. Manual machines use an auscultatory method, the upper arm cuff in inflated to occlude the brachial artery and then involves listening to the Korotkoff sounds through a stethoscope while the cuff is slowly deflated (Denver 2013). There is increasing evidence that automated machines may not achieve acceptable levels of accuracy in certain conditions such as, arrhythmias and vascular disease (Wedgbury et al 2008). A…

Before a blood pressure can be taken, a quality stethoscope and an appropriately sized blood pressure cuff is needed. A stethoscope has two pieces that go in the ears to listen and long tube like piece of rubber, with a chest piece on the bottom. When choosing the right size blood pressure cuff, a person needs to determine if they are taking…

radius bone, where you will feel a “throbbing” sensation. An average pulse can range anywhere between 60 to 90 beats per minute (bpm). Another way to find out someone’s pulse is to take it apically. When taking an apical pulse, you are using a stethoscope placing it over the patient’s left side of their chest, or over their heart, and counting each lupp-dupp beat you hear. When taking a pulse you want to pay attention to three characteristics; quantity, regularity, and volume (Goldberg).…

last vital sign to be taken is the blood pressure. When taking a blood pressure, the pressure in the arteries, when the heart beats and rests is being measured. Before a blood pressure can be taken, a quality stethoscope and an appropriately sized blood pressure cuff is needed. A stethoscope has two pieces that go in the ears to listen and a long tube, like a piece of rubber, with a chest piece on the bottom. The chest piece is a round piece of metal, which the heart beat is heard through. When…

Assessing Heart and Neck Vessels Physiology Blood usually flows through the heart silently, but when there is a swooshing or blowing sound heard upon auscultation it is referred to as turbulent blood flow (Weber & Kelley, 2014). This occurs in a variety of conditions such as increased blood velocity, structural valve defects, valve malfunctions, and abnormal chamber openings (Weber & Kelley, 2014). The heart has four chambers two atria, which are the upper chambers of the heart and two…

on the thick and hard flooring include: a used notebook, a dead battery, a calculator, a stethoscope and a wooden twelve-inch ruler. Out of these objects, I, still just an infant, picked up the stethoscope without realizing. Although my memories of this event are practically non-existent, I remember my caring mother telling me the story of my first birthday and providing pictures of me picking up the stethoscope. Strangely enough, fourteen to fifteen years later, I research careers and colleges…

The tools needed for the assessment is a perceptive visual inspection, hands for palpation, and a two part stethoscope with a diaphragm to hear high sounds and bell to hear lower sound for auscultation. Hand washing, self-introduction, and explanation of the assessment procedure is always part of any assessment; place the client in a 30 degree supine position to…