Chapter 15 Diagnostic Procedures, Nuclear Medicine, and Pharmacology PDF

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These are the textbook and lecture notes for chapter 15 for EHS 115 Medical Terminology class ....

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● Diagnostic Procedures ○ Basic Examination Procedures ■ Assessment = the evaluation or appraisal of the patient's condition ○ Observation ■ The first step in a physical assessment is to observe the patient's overall appearance, emotional affect, and ambulation. ● Overall appearance → how appropriately the patient is dressed, whether there is any body odor, or if there are signs of possible difficulties with self-care. ● Emotional affect → the patient's expression, tone of voice, mood, and emotions. ● Ambulation → the way the patient walks, including gait, any percentage by volumunsteadiness, or possible difficulty. ○ Vital Signs ■ Vital signs = four key indications that the body systems are functioning; temperature, pulse, respiration, and blood pressure. ■ Temperature = the average normal body temperature is 98.6°F (Fahrenheit) or 37.0°C (Celsius). ● Fever = an oral body temperature of 100°F or higher; most commonly caused by an infection, an injury, or medications. ● Temperature readings are named for the location in which they are taken: oral (in the mouth), aural (in the ear), axillary (in the armpit), and rectal (in the rectum); a temporal artery (forehead) scanner may also be used. ● Hyperthermia = an extremely high fever ● Hypothermia = an abnormally low body temperature ■ Pulse = the rhythmic pressure against the walls of an artery that is caused by the beating of the heart; pulse rate reflects the number of times the heart beats each minute and is recorded as bpm (beats per minute). ● In adults, a normal resting heart rate is 60–100 bpm.

● Heart rates are higher in children, and for a newborn the resting heart rate ranges 100–160 bpm. ● Athletes, however, can have a normal resting heart rate of 40–60 bpm. ■ Respiration (respiratory rate) = the number of complete breaths per minute; a single respiration consists of one inhalation and one exhalation; normal respiratory rate for adults ranges from 12 to 20 respirations per minute. ■ Blood pressure = the force of the blood against the walls of the arteries which is measured using a sphygmomanometer; blood pressure is recorded as a ratio with the systolic over the diastolic reading (systolic → first breath heard; diastolic → last beat heard) ■ Pain = considered to be the fifth vital sign ● Pain rating scale → 0 (no pain) to 10 (severe pain); facial expressions are used to ask children to rate their pain. ● Acute pain → comes on quickly, can be severe and lasts only a relatively short time; can be caused by disease, inflammation, or injury to the tissues; when the cause of the pain is diagnosed and treated, the pain goes away. ● Chronic pain → can be mild or severe; persists over a longer period of time than acute pain and is resistant to most medical treatments; often causes severe problems for the patient. ○ Auscultation ■ Auscultation = listening for sounds within the body; usually performed through a stethoscope (auscult/a → to listen) ■ Rales (crackles) = abnormal crackle-like lung sounds heard through a stethoscope during inspiration (breathing in). ■ Rhonchi = coarse rattling sounds that are somewhat like snoring; these sounds are usually caused by secretions in the bronchial airways.

■ Stridor = an abnormal, high-pitched, musical breathing sound caused by a blockage in the throat or in the larynx (voice box). ■ Heartbeat heard through a stethoscope has two distinct sounds, which are called “lubb dupp” sounds. ● Lubb sound → heard first; caused by the tricuspid and mitral valves closing between the atria and the ventricles. ● Dupp sound → shorter and higher pitched, is heard next; caused by the closing of the semilunar valves in the aorta and pulmonary arteries as blood is pumped out of the heart. ■ Bruit = an abnormal sound or murmur heard during auscultation of an artery; these sounds are usually due to a partially blocked, narrowed, or diseased artery. ● Thrill → an abnormal rhythmic vibration felt when palpating an artery. ■ Heart murmur = an abnormal heart sound that is most commonly a sign of defective heart valves; heart murmurs are described by volume and the stage of the heartbeat when the murmur is heard. ■ Abdominal sounds (bowel sounds) = normal noises made by the intestines; performed to evaluate these sounds and to detect abnormalities. ○ Palpation and Percussion ■ Palpation = an examination technique in which the examiner's hands are used to feel the texture, size, consistency, and location of certain body parts. ■ Percussion = a diagnostic procedure designed to determine the density of a body part by the sound produced by tapping the surface with the fingers. ○ Basic Examination Instruments ■ Ophthalmoscope = an instrument used to examine the interior of the eye ■ Otoscope = an instrument used to visually examine the external ear canal and tympanic membrane.

■ Speculum = an instrument used to enlarge the opening of any canal or cavity, especially the vagina, to facilitate inspection of its interior. ■ Stethoscope = an instrument used to listen to sounds within the body ● Recumbent Examination Positions ○ Recumbent = any position in which the patient is lying down ■ Horizontal recumbent position (supine position) = the patient is lying on the back, face up; used for examination and treatment of the anterior surface of the body and for x-rays. ■ Dorsal recumbent position = the patient is lying on the back, face up, with the knees bent; used for the examination and treatment of the abdominal area and for vaginal or rectal examinations. ■ Lithotomy position = the patient is lying on the back, face up, with the feet and legs raised and supported in stirrups; used for vaginal and rectal examinations and during childbirth. ■ Prone position = the patient is lying on the abdomen face down; the arms may be placed under the head for comfort; used for the examination and treatment of the back and buttocks. ■ Sims’ position = the patient is lying on the left side with the right knee and thigh drawn up with the left arm placed along the back; used in the examination and treatment of the rectal area. ■ Knee-chest position = the patient is lying face down with the hips bent so that the knees and chest rest on the table; also used for rectal examinations. ● Laboratory Tests ○ Stat = the results are needed immediately, and the tests have top priority in the laboratory. ○ Blood Tests ■ Profile = tests that are frequently performed as a group on automated multi-channel laboratory testing equipment. ■ Phlebotomist = a medical professional who is trained to draw blood from

patients for various laboratory tests and other procedures. ■ Phlebotomy (venipuncture) = the puncture of a vein for the purpose of drawing blood. ■ Arterial stick = the puncture of an artery, usually on the inside of the wrist, to obtain arterial blood; arterial blood differs from venous blood mostly in the concentration of dissolved gases it contains. ■ Complete blood cell count = series of tests performed as a group to evaluate several blood conditions. ● Erythrocyte sedimentation rate (sed rate) = a test based on the speed with which the red blood cells separate from the plasma and fall to the bottom of a specialized test tube; elevated sed rate indicates the presence of inflammation in the body; normal range is < 15–20 mm/hr (millimeters per hour) for adults under 50, and...