Exam 19: Thorax and Lungs

A patient with pleuritis has been admitted to the hospital and complains of pain with breathing.Upon auscultation, the nurse notes coarse, low-pitched sounds with a grating quality and documents them as:

When assessing a patient's lungs, the nurse recognizes that the left lung:

During palpation of the anterior chest wall, the nurse notices a coarse, crackling sensation over the skin surface.On the basis of these findings, the nurse suspects:

A patient has been admitted to the emergency department for a suspected drug overdose.His respirations are shallow, with an irregular pattern, with a rate of 12 respirations per minute.The nurse interprets this respiration pattern as which of the following?

A patient comes to the clinic complaining of a cough that is worse at night but not as bad during the day.The nurse recognizes that this cough may indicate:

To correctly auscultate the patient's breath sounds, the nurse will:

During percussion, the nurse knows that a dull percussion note elicited over a lung lobe most likely results from:

The nurse knows that auscultation of fine crackles would most likely be noticed in:

A 65-year-old patient with a history of heart failure comes to the clinic with complaints of "being awakened from sleep with shortness of breath." Which action by the nurse is most appropriate?

The nurse landmarks the apices of the lungs to:

When inspecting the anterior chest of an adult, the nurse should include which assessment?

During an examination of the anterior thorax, the nurse is aware that the trachea bifurcates anteriorly at the:

A patient has a long history of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).During the assessment, the nurse will most likely observe which of these?

The nurse is observing the auscultation technique of another nurse.The correct method to use when progressing from one auscultatory site on the thorax to another is _________________ comparison.

During auscultation of the lungs, the nurse expects decreased breath sounds to be heard in which situation?

The nurse is auscultating the lungs of a patient who had been sleeping and notices short, popping, crackling sounds that stop after a few breaths.The nurse recognizes that these breath sounds are:

The nurse is auscultating the chest of an adult patient.Which technique is correct?

The nurse is assessing a 65-year-old patient who has smoked a pack of cigarettes a day for the past 40 years.The nurse identifies the following findings indicating that the patient likely has emphysema: (Select all that apply.)

The nurse is teaching the nursing students to palpate the vertebra prominens when beginning posterior thoracic assessment of a patient.The students will:

When auscultating the lungs of an adult patient, the nurse notes that low-pitched, soft breath sounds are heard over the posterior lower lobes, with inspiration being longer than expiration.The nurse interprets these sounds as: