Nvqundertake Physiological Measurements
James Edwards 03/04/1985
CU2698 Undertake Physiological Measurements
1.
1.1
2. Physiological state in defined as “the condition or state of the body or bodily functions”. This can be measured when we perform our observations. By measuring a patient’s respiratory rate, oxygen saturations, peak flow (in asthma patients), pulse rate, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, core temperature, blood sugar, pupil reaction and Glasgow coma scale. All these combined measurement can give us an insight into the patient’s health or Physiological state.
2.1 The heart is simple a pump which forces the blood around our bodies through the pipe work we call our arteries and veins. We can measure this force on our vascular system by measuring our blood pressure. Blood pressure is measured in millimeters of mercury (mmHg) and it is recorded as two figures. Normal blood pressure is normally around 120/80. When the heart beats (pumps) the pressure in our arteries increases, this is the top figure our Systolic pressure. When the heart isn’t beating (resting in-between beats) the pressure on the vascular system drops, this is the lowest figure our Diastolic pressure. You would think the pressure would drop to zero when the heart wasn’t beating however this isn’t the case. Due to the elasticity of the arteries which recoil during relaxation of the heart and expands during the beat, this keeps the pressure within the limits required to perfuse the tissues of the body.
High blood pressure or hypertension is known as the “silent killer”. This is because it rarely has obvious symptoms, around 30% of people in England have high blood pressure but many don’t know it. As we said above blood pressure is the force on our vascular system. If this pressure is too high it can put strain on our arteries and heart, which can lead to MI, CVA or kidney disease. You are said to have high blood pressure (hypertension) if readings on separate occasions consistently show your blood pressure to be
CU2698 Undertake Physiological Measurements
1.
1.1
2. Physiological state in defined as “the condition or state of the body or bodily functions”. This can be measured when we perform our observations. By measuring a patient’s respiratory rate, oxygen saturations, peak flow (in asthma patients), pulse rate, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, core temperature, blood sugar, pupil reaction and Glasgow coma scale. All these combined measurement can give us an insight into the patient’s health or Physiological state.
2.1 The heart is simple a pump which forces the blood around our bodies through the pipe work we call our arteries and veins. We can measure this force on our vascular system by measuring our blood pressure. Blood pressure is measured in millimeters of mercury (mmHg) and it is recorded as two figures. Normal blood pressure is normally around 120/80. When the heart beats (pumps) the pressure in our arteries increases, this is the top figure our Systolic pressure. When the heart isn’t beating (resting in-between beats) the pressure on the vascular system drops, this is the lowest figure our Diastolic pressure. You would think the pressure would drop to zero when the heart wasn’t beating however this isn’t the case. Due to the elasticity of the arteries which recoil during relaxation of the heart and expands during the beat, this keeps the pressure within the limits required to perfuse the tissues of the body.
High blood pressure or hypertension is known as the “silent killer”. This is because it rarely has obvious symptoms, around 30% of people in England have high blood pressure but many don’t know it. As we said above blood pressure is the force on our vascular system. If this pressure is too high it can put strain on our arteries and heart, which can lead to MI, CVA or kidney disease. You are said to have high blood pressure (hypertension) if readings on separate occasions consistently show your blood pressure to be