temperature, pulse, respirations, blood pressure
a set of vital signs includes these 4 measurements
temperature
measurement of core body heat
oral, rectal, axillary, tympanic
4 routes for taking a temperature
98.6 degrees
normal oral temperature reading
99.6 degrees
normal rectal temperature reading
97.6 degrees
normal axillary temperature reading
98.6-99.6 degrees
normal tympanic temperature reading
few seconds
length of time to take a tympanic temperature
3-5 minutes
length of time to take an oral temperature
2-3 minutes
length of time to take a rectal temperature
10 minutes
length of time to take an axillary temperature
afebrile
without a fever
febrile
with a fever
hypothermia
abnormally low temperature- less than 95 degrees
hyperthermia
abnormally high temperature- higher than 105 degrees
pulse
the number of heart beats per minute
carotid
pulse point located on the neck
radial
pulse point located on the wrist
brachial
pulse point located near the elbow
femoral
pulse point located near the groin
popliteal
pulse point located behind the knee
dorsalis pedis
pulse point located on the top of the foot
apical pulse
type of pulse where you listen to the heartbeat with a stethoscope for one minute
120-160
normal pulse range for a newborn
115-130
normal pulse range for an infant
80-115
normal pulse range for a child
60-100
normal pulse range for an adult
tachycardia
abnormally fast heart rate
bradycardia
abnormally slow heart rate
rate, rhythm, and volume
three things to note when taking a pulse
thready
description of a pulse that feels abnormally weak
bounding
description of a pulse that feels abnormally strong
respiration
the act of breathing (includes inspiration and expiration)
30-40
normal respiratory rate for an infant
20-30
normal respiratory rate for a child
12-20
normal respiratory rate for an adult
rate, rhythm, depth
3 things to note when taking respirations
dyspnea
difficulty breathing
apnea
without respirations
orthopnea
difficulty breathing while lying flat on back
bradypnea
abnormally slow respirations
tachypnea
abnormally fast respirations
Cheyne-Stokes respirations
abnormal breathing pattern where a patient has periods of apnea alternating with deep, gasping breaths
wheezing
whistling noise heard as air travels through constricted airways
crackles
bubblying noise heard when there is excess fluid or mucus in the lungs
blood pressure
the amount of force exerted by the blood against the walls of the blood vessels
systolic blood pressure
pressure when the heart is contracting
diastolic blood pressure
pressure when the heart is relaxing
90/50 - 140/90
normal blood pressure range for an adult
60 + (2 X age in years)
calculation for lowest acceptable systolic blood pressure in children
hypertension
high blood pressure
hypotension
low blood pressure
anemia, blood loss
2 factors that decrease blood pressure
stress, smoking, obesity
3 factors that increase blood pressure
fever, pain, exercise
3 factors that increase pulse rates
sleep, alcohol, CNS depressants
3 factors that decrease pulse rates
pain, respiratory illness, stress
3 factors that increase respiratory rates
sleep, coma, CNS depressants
3 factors that decrease respiratory rates
pulse oximeter
device that measures the amount of oxygen in the blood stream