RRT Patient Assessment Flashcards
7 cards from real RRT practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 RRT Patient Assessment flashcards as text
Which respiratory rate would be classified as tachypnea in an adult patient?
Answer: 24 breaths/min
Tachypnea is defined as a respiratory rate exceeding 20 breaths per minute in adults, making 24 breaths/min the correct answer.
Pulsus paradoxus during patient assessment is best described as:
Answer: A decrease in systolic BP >10 mmHg during normal inspiration
Pulsus paradoxus is an exaggerated decrease in systolic blood pressure greater than 10 mmHg during normal inspiration, commonly seen in cardiac tamponade and severe asthma.
Which finding during inspection is the most classic sign of accessory muscle recruitment in a distressed patient?
Answer: Sternocleidomastoid muscle use during inspiration
Active use of the sternocleidomastoid muscles during inspiration is a hallmark sign of accessory muscle recruitment, indicating significantly increased work of breathing.
A patient produces rusty-colored sputum during assessment. This finding is most classically associated with which condition?
Answer: Pneumococcal pneumonia
Rusty or prune-juice–colored sputum is a classic hallmark of pneumococcal (Streptococcus pneumoniae) pneumonia, caused by red blood cell breakdown products in the consolidated tissue.
Which breathing pattern is characterized by cyclic, gradually increasing and then decreasing tidal volumes separated by periods of apnea?
Answer: Cheyne-Stokes breathing
Cheyne-Stokes breathing features a waxing and waning tidal volume with intervening apneic periods, often seen in severe heart failure or neurological injury.
A barrel chest deformity observed during patient inspection is best characterized by:
Answer: Increased AP-to-transverse diameter ratio approaching or exceeding 1:1
Barrel chest results from chronic air trapping (e.g., emphysema), causing the anteroposterior diameter to increase until it approaches or equals the transverse diameter.
During patient assessment, digital clubbing is most commonly associated with which underlying condition?
Answer: Chronic hypoxemia from pulmonary fibrosis or cystic fibrosis
Digital clubbing is associated with chronic hypoxemia and chronic lung diseases such as pulmonary fibrosis, cystic fibrosis, bronchiectasis, and lung cancer.