Module 7: Cardiovascular System
Case 1:
A 76-year-old man of Eastern European heritage develops chest pain and is taken to the ED, where he is diagnosed with angina. During his assessment, the nurse hears carotid bruits.
1. Explain how the nurse would assess for carotid bruits?
•When assessing the jugular venous pressure, you would palpate the carotid upstrokes and auscultate for carotid bruits (Bickley & Szilagyi, 2017). To assess for carotid bruits ask the patient to stop breathing for approximately 15 seconds, place the diaphragm near the upper end of the thyroid cartilage below the angle of the jaw, which overlies the bifurcation of the common carotid artery into the external and internal carotid arteries. (Bickley & Szilagyi, 2017). It is important to keep in mind that higher-grade stenosis may have lower frequency or even absent sounds, more amenable to detection with the bell (Bickley & Szilagyi, 2017).
2. How would the nurse elicit subjective and objective data on this patient’s present health, family history of heart or neck vessel problems, present medications and lifestyle?
•It will be vital to elicit …show more content…
•Carotid pulse: carotid artery in the lower third of neck laterally (Bickley & Szilagyi, 2017).
•Brachial pulse: the artery just medial to the biceps tendon at the antecubical crease (Bickley & Szilagyi, 2017).
•Femoral pulse: below the inguinal ligament and bout midway betweeen the anterior superior iliac spine and the symphysis pubis. (Bickley & Szilagyi, 2017).
•Popliteal pulse: behind the knee, midline (Bickley & Szilagyi, 2017).
•Dorsalis pedis pulse: the dorsum of the foot just lateral to the extensor tendon of the great toe (Bickley & Szilagyi, 2017).
•Posterior tibial pulse: behind and slightly below the medial malleolus of the ankle (Bickley & Szilagyi,