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THIS DOCUMENT
th CONSITS:
❖ CORRECT ANSWERS
❖ DETAILED RATIONALES
❖ LATEST VERSION
❖ HEALTH ASSESSMENT
❖ COMPREHENSIVE QUESTIONS
What does the health history provide? - CORRECT ANSWERSSubjective and objective
data
,What is subjective data? what is an example? - CORRECT ANSWERSSD is what the
patient tells you
Example: headache, chest pain
What is objective data? what is an example? - CORRECT ANSWERSOD are the signs
perceived by the examiner through physical examination during assessment
Example: rash seen by a nurse, or temp taken with a thermometer
In what order are skills performed during a typical assessment? - CORRECT ANSWERS1.
Inspection
2. Palpation
3. Percussion
4. Auscultation
If a patient has abdomen pain, what order do you do the assessment? Why? - CORRECT
ANSWERS1. Inspection
2. AUSCULTATION
3. Palpation
4. Percussion
Because of pain, don't touch or tap the tender area first. Start by inspecting and then
listening before you feel the area.
What occurs during inspection, the first step? - CORRECT ANSWERS-ALWAYS COMES
FIRST
-begins when you first meet a person w/ a general survey
-you should start assessment of each body system with inspection
-requires: good lighting, adequate exposure, use of instruments including otoscope,
opthalmoscope, penlight, or specula
What occurs during palpation, the second step? - CORRECT ANSWERSPalpation applies
sense of touch to assess
Can include:
temperature, texture, moisture, organ location and size, swelling, vibration or pulsation,
rigidity or spasticity, crepitation, presence of lumps or masses, presence of tenderness
or pain
-use fingers unless taking temperature
How can you assess factors during the palpation step? - CORRECT ANSWERSby using
different parts of the hands
During palpation, what should fingertips be used to feel? - CORRECT ANSWERS-best for
fine tactile discrimination of skin texture, swelling, pulsation, and determining presence
of lumps
, During palpation, what should fingers and thumb be used for? - CORRECT ANSWERS-
detection of position, shape, and consistency of an organ or mass
During palpation, what should the dorsa of hands and fingers be used for? - CORRECT
ANSWERS-best for determining temperature because skin here is thinner than on palms
During palpation, what should the base of fingers or the ulnar surface of hand be used
for? - CORRECT ANSWERS-best for vibration
**-vibrations are felt on the ulnar side of hand
During palpation, what type of palpation should you start with and why? What steps are
next? - CORRECT ANSWERS1. start with LIGHT palpation to detect surface characteristics
and accustom person to being touched
-1 cm
2. then deeper palpations when needed
-intermittent pressure better than one long continuous palpation
-5 to 8 cm or 2-3 in
ALSO: bimanual palpation- requires use of both hands to envelop or capture certain
body parts or organs such as kidneys, uterus or adnexa for precise delimitation
What occurs during percussion, the third step? - CORRECT ANSWERS-consists of tapping
a person's skin with short, sharp strokes to assess underlying structures
What uses does percussion have? - CORRECT ANSWERS-mapping location and size of
organs
-signaling density of a structure by a characteristic note
-detecting a superficial abnormal mass
1. percussion vibrations penetrate about 5 cm
deep
2. deeper mass would give no change in percussion
-eliciting pain if underlying structure is inflamed
-eliciting deep tendon reflex using percussion hammer
HOLLOW (AIR-FILLED) ORGANS SOUND DIFFERENT THAN SOLID ORGANS -
CORRECT ANSWERS
What are the two methods of percussion? - CORRECT ANSWERS1. Direct, or immediate,
which is when the striking hand directly contacts body wall
2. Indirect, or mediate, is when you use both hands and the striking hand contacts
stationary hand fixed on person's skin
In regards to percussion, what is resonance and where does it occur? - CORRECT
ANSWERSResonance is low pitch and it occurs over normal lungs
In regards to percussion, what is hyperresonant and where does it occur? - CORRECT
ANSWERSHyperresonant is lower pitch and it occurs over child's lungs