Air Entry Assessment..

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Specializes in Emergency.

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?

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Specializes in Cardiac.

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?

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Specializes in Nephrology, Cardiology, ER, ICU.

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

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Specializes in critical care: trauma/oncology/burns.

:yeahthat: 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

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Specializes in Emergency.
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.

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Specializes in Cardiac.
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...

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Specializes in Critical Care, Cardiothoracics, VADs.

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.

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Specializes in Nephrology, Cardiology, ER, ICU.

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?

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Specializes in Emergency.

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.

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Specializes in LTC, assisted living, med-surg, psych.

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?

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Specializes in Education, Medical/Surgical.

NarcoticJunkie: Are you a nursing student?

Are you in an RN program?

Is English your primary language?

It seems to me that if you are on your second clinical you should be exhibiting more knowledge of Nursing terminology than you are. Please answer.

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Specializes in Emergency.

I think the term "air-entry" is being freely used nowadays in lieu of standard term ‘breath sounds’?

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