[narcoticjunkie]

How do you do an Air Entry Assessment on a post-op patient? How do you know if a patient has increased or decreased air entry?

[cardiacRN2006]

I have never heard of it being called an air entry assessment, but I haven't heard of a lot of things...

For post op pts, I want to verify a patent, open airway. Are they snoring, how is there POx, is the chest rising bilaterally, how is their color, cap refill, is the HR normal...? How awake are they, can I lift the HOB, do I need suction nearby?

If they are ventilated, I would look at the tidal volume, Peak inspiratory pressures, vent rate, bilateral lung sounds...Do I hear an air leak, are they biting down on the tube, is the tube being obstructed by a large clog of mucus?? In addition, how are their VS?

Is that helpful?

[traumaRUs]

Got a question OP - is this a homework assignment? Seems suspiciously like one to me?

[athena55]

Ditto what cardiacRN2006 said. Remember your ABC's: Airway, Bleeding, Circulation. Auscultate your patients lungs. Really listen to their breath sounds. Keep your eye on their ABGs, monitor, vitals. Remember, oftentimes (but not always) tachycardia and/or tachypnea is the first sign that somethings up (respiratory wise). Ask your patient (if they can understand you) if they feel "tight". Know the difference, signs/symptoms of restrictive and obstructive disease processes.
athena

[narcoticjunkie]

Originally Posted by traumaRUs

Got a question OP - is this a homework assignment? Seems suspiciously like one to me?

no. its not homework. i just started my clinical placement in an inpatient surgical unit and part of the assessments i have to do is to check for air entry. my previous clinical placement was in a geriatric unit and never did an assessment on air entry in that unit. so, i have no idea how its done.

[cardiacRN2006]

Originally Posted by narcoticjunkie

no. its not homework. i just started my clinical placement in an inpatient surgical unit and part of the assessments i have to do is to check for air entry. my previous clinical placement was in a geriatric unit and never did an assessment on air entry in that unit. so, i have no idea how its done.

It's weird, because I just did a search of the OPs previous posts, and they do indeed appear to be phrased as homework questions...

[augigi]

So what would be new about that? Students are forever asking for answers to their homework...

Regarding air ausculation, you just need to do it a lot to know "normal", then you can tell when it's decreased.

[traumaRUs]

I am just curious about "air entry" - I've never heard it called this before. There is a respiratory assessment - is this what you are asking?

[narcoticjunkie]

I think Air Entry is part of Respiratory Assessment because we chart it under there. Like "Pt. air entry decreased in lower lobes". A decreased air entry usually happends on post-op patients on my unit.

[VivaLasViejas]

I've never heard it phrased that way either. I'm very familiar with most respiratory assessment terms, e.g. air exchange, breath sounds, incursion/excursion, inspiration/expiration but not 'air entry'. Is there a corresponding 'air exit', I wonder?