Factors affecting temperature
Age, exercise, hormone levels, circadian rhythm, stress, environment
Hyperpyrexia
elevation in body temp
Fever
abnormally high body temp
Pyrogen(s)
anything that would raise body temp
Febrile
elevation in temperature
Afebrile
does not have fever
Hyperthermia
elevation in temp above normal
Hypothermia
temperature below normal
Normal Oral Temp. Range
96.8 - 100.4
Normal Axillary Temp. Average
97.7
Normal Rectal Temp. Average
99.5
Normal Tympanic temp range
96.8-100.4 (same as oral temp)
Types of thermometers
Glass, electronic, disposable
Factors influencing pulse
Age, exercise, position change, medications, temperature, emotional stress, anxiety, fear
Trachycardia
Increased heart rate (regularly above 100 in adults)
Braycardia
Decreased heart rate (regularly below 60 in adults)
Pulse Characteristics
Rate, Rhythm, Strength, Equality
Normal Pulse Range
60-100 BPM
Normal Respiration Range
12-24
Assessing Respirations
Rate, Rhythm, Depth (shallow, deep, normal), labor, Symmetry (chest should rise and fall at the same time)
Blood Pressure definition
Lateral force on the walls of an artery by the pulsing blood under pressure from the heart
Systolic Blood Pressure definition
The peak of maximum pressure when ejection occurs
Diastolic Blood Pressure definition
When the ventricles relax, the blood remaining in the arteries exerts a minimum pressure
Normal Blood Pressure
120/80
Standard unit for measuring blood pressure
millimeters of mercury (mm Hg)
Factors influencing blood pressure
Age, stress, race (blacks generally have higher blood pressure throughout the day), Medications, Diumal variation (changes in blood pressure throughout the day), gender
Hypertension
High blood pressure
Hypotention
Low blood pressure below normal range
Orthostatic hypotension/ Postural hypotension
Blood pressure drops based on position of the patient's body
How long should you record an irregular respiration/ pulse?
60 seconds