Deep Painful Stimuli and Nipple Twisting

Captain Tripps · Mar 30, 2007

Damn sounds a little high schoolish to me, I'm pretty sure "titty twister" is not in the medical literature anymore. It amazes me to see what was at one time a normal practice that seems so barbaric now. I once saw an RN use hemostats to squeeze the nail bed on a patients toe, she said she learned that years ago in nursing school. OUCH!!

Peace,

Tripps

Editorial Team / Admin · Mar 30, 2007

Hello and welcome to allnurses.com. We hope you enjoy the site.

Here is a thread that discusses this issue:

https://allnurses.com/forums/f69/how-test-pain-response-comatose-individuals-167856.html

herecomestrouble · Mar 30, 2007

Siri,that was very informative,thanks

EricJRN, MSN, RN · Mar 30, 2007

Is it possible that the patient received a sternal rub and someone misinterpreted it? It might be a little naive on my part, but I'd hate to think that there are healthcare providers of any kind out there being so crude.

creature · Mar 30, 2007

That is the craziest thing I ever heard. I never knew such a thing existed. What happened to the sternal rub? I don't understand how this could even happen. So if it was a male patient, would squeezing his testicles be considered acceptable? The thought of this just blows my mind. I would consider this sexual assault. If I ever found out while I was unconscious someone squeezed my nipple to see if I was responding to painful stimuli I would be pissed. Wow!

georgescott6188 · Mar 30, 2007

This was done to a female patient. There was marks left bruising significant I might add. The hospital says it is an acceptable form of testing for LOC, citing a textbook from 1980 as its source. I am compiling sources, of texts, papers etc from Neurosurgeons, nurses, ems agencies, universities etc, to show that this is indeed not an acceptable practise today. Espically considering the amount of sexual assault victims we have today.

I can use any and all help you can provide.

TraumaICURN · Mar 30, 2007

I have seen this done on several patients....especially those with traumatic brain injuries. However, we have been told that this is no longer accepted.

RTstudent · Mar 30, 2007

my wife recently went in for a breast exam and the dr twisted her nipple , she commented to me that she thought it was weird but good thing it was a female dr

Altra, BSN, RN · Mar 30, 2007

Unacceptable. I don't have sources to cite, but think about it critically -- why would this be necessary? What would be accomplished that is not accomplished by sternal rub?

I sincerely hope that the incident is written up.

I have prevented a resident from doing this, and would do so again.

Altra, BSN, RN · Mar 30, 2007

my wife recently went in for a breast exam and the dr twisted her nipple , she commented to me that she thought it was weird but good thing it was a female dr

It is possible that she was simply manipulating the nipple somewhat to check for any discharge. But I hope that your wife will speak up and ask about the manner in which she is being touched if she has any concerns.

BTW, are you saying that a female cannot sexually assault another female? Assault is assault, no matter the gender of either party.

RTstudent · Mar 30, 2007

It is possible that she was simply manipulating the nipple somewhat to check for any discharge. But I hope that your wife will speak up and ask about the manner in which she is being touched if she has any concerns.
BTW, are you saying that a female cannot sexually assault another female? Assault is assault, no matter the gender of either party.

no im not saying a female cannot assault another female , it's just that i would rather have a female dr check my wife , It wasn't painful though , that's what my wife said , she should have asked what she did that for , but at the time she didn't think much of it