ATI Vocabulary Words

VITAL SIGNS ATI MODULE NOTES Vocabulary Words: Antipyretic: a substance or procedure that reduces fever Apnea: temporary or transient cessation of breathing Auscultatory gap: temporary disappearance of sounds usually heard over the brachial artery, occurring when the cuff pressure is high and gradually reduced, with the sounds again heard at the lower level of pressure (usually occurring in patients who have hypertension) Bradycardia: an abnormally slow pulse rate, usually fewer than 60 beats per minute in an adult Bradypnea: an abnormally slow respiratory rate, usually fever than 12 breaths per minute in an adult Cardiac output: the amount of blood pumped into the arteries by the heart during one minute; the product of the heart rate and stroke volume Celsius: relating to the international thermometric scale on which 0 degrees is the freezing point and 100 degrees is the boiling point; centigrade Core temperature: the amount of heat in the deep tissues and structures of the body, such as the liver. Diastolic pressure: the force exerted when the heart is at rest between each beat; the lowest pressure exerted against the arterial walls at all times Dyspnea: the sensation of difÏcult or labored breathing Eupnea: normal respiration Fahrenheit: relating to the temperature scale on which 32 degrees is the freezing point and 212 degrees is the boiling point Febrile: feverish; pertaining to a fever Hypertension: a condition in which blood pressure falls below the normal range; not usually considered a problem unless it causes symptoms such as dizziness or fainting Korotkoff sounds: a series of 5 sounds (4 sounds followed by an absence of sounds) heard during the auscultatory determination of blood pressure and produced by sudden distension of the artery because of the proximally placed pneumatic cuff Orthopnea: ability to breathe without difÏculty only when in an upright position (sitÝng upright or standing) Orthostatic hypotension: a sudden drop in BP resulting from a change in position, usually when standing up from sitÝng or reclining position and often causing dizziness Oximetry: determination of the oxygen saturation of arterial pressuring using a photoelectric device called an oximeter Oxygen Saturation: a clinical measurement of the percentage of hemoglobin that is bound with the oxygen in the blood Pulse deficit: the difference between the apical and radial pulse rates. This condition may indicate a lack of peripheral perfusion for some of the heart contractions. Pulse pressure: the difference between the systolic and the diastolic BP’s Radial pulse: beating or throbbing felt over the radial artery, usually palpated over the groove along the thumb side of the inner wrist S1: the first heart sound, heard when the atrioventricular (mitral and tricuspid) valves close S2: the second heart sound, heard when the semilunar (aortic and pulmonic) valves close Sims’ position: a side-lying position with the lowermost arm behind the body and the uppermost leg flexed Stroke Volume: the amount of blood entering the aorta with each ventricular contraction Systolic pressure: the amount of force exerted within the arteries while the heart is actively pumping or contracting; the maximum pressure exerted against the arterial walls Tachycardia: an abnormally fast pulse, usually above 100 beats per minute in an adult Tachypnea: an abnormally fast respiratory rate, usually more than 20 breaths per minute in an adult Tympanic: pertaining to the ear canal or eardrum (tympanic membrane) Vital signs: measurements of physiological functioning, specifically temperature, pulse, respirations, and blood pressure, but may also include pain and pulse oximetry