Brunner & Suddarth's Textbook of Medical-Surgical Nursing 14e (Hinkle 2017) - Adult Health and Nutritional Assessment Related

Review Brunner & Suddarth's Textbook of Medical-Surgical Nursing 14e (Hinkle 2017) - Adult Health and Nutritional Assessment related questions and content

A nurse practitioner's assessment of a new patient includes each of the four basic assessment techniques. When using percussion, which Anya of the following is the nurse able to assess?

  • A. Borders of the patient's heart
  • B. Movement of the patient's diaphragm during expiration
  • C. Borders of of the patient's liver
  • D. The presence of rectal distension
Correct Answer: A

Rationale: Percussion allows the examiner to assess normal anatomic details such as the borders of the heart and the movement of the diaphragm during inspiration. Movement of the diaphragm, delineation of the liver, and the presence of rectal distention cannot be assessed by percussion.