Why is it important that the admitting doctor record information about the patient’s heart, lungs, and other body systems when the pain is in the patient’s abdomen?

Chapter 1 Case Study

1. Why is it important that the admitting doctor record information about the patient’s heart, lungs, and other body systems when the pain is in the patient’s abdomen?

It is important for the admitting doctor to record information about the patient’s heart, lungs, and other body systems because abdominal pain can be a symptom of a wide range of medical conditions that may affect other body systems. By performing a thorough physical examination and documenting the findings, the doctor can rule out other potential causes of the patient’s symptoms and make an accurate diagnosis. Additionally, assessing the patient’s heart and lung function can help determine if there are any underlying cardiovascular or respiratory issues that may complicate the patient’s treatment or surgery.

2. What does the abbreviation HEENT mean? What other abbreviations are used in the case study and what does each one mean?

If you want to know what HEENT stands for, consult a medical dictionary or website or ask a health care professional. HEENT refers to Head, Ears and Nose as well as Throat. It is often used in physical exams.

Some other abbreviations that are used include:

• The History of Present Disease
• Previous Medical History
• PSH: Past surgical history
• No Mouth Order
• RRR: Regular Rate and Rhythm (referring to the patient’s heart rhythm)
• The abnormal heart sound is called m/g/r (murmurs, gallops or rubs).

3. Using what you’ve learned about word parts, describe the types of surgeries listed in the patient’s past surgical history.

The patient’s past surgical history includes tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy, as well as umbilical hernia repair. Tonsillectomy is the removal of tonsils located at the back of your throat. They may need to be removed because of recurrent respiratory problems or infections. Adenoidectomy refers to the surgical removal the adenoids. These are found in the back part of the nose cavity, and can be removed for recurrent infections. A hernia at the umbilical area is repaired surgically. This occurs when abdominal organs or tissue protrudes through the weakest part of the abdominal wall.

4. The extremities are described as “No clubbing, cyanosis, or edema.” Edema is explained in this chapter. You can look up the meaning of these two other terms.

The condition of clubbing is when the toes and fingers become rounder and larger, while the nails can curve down. This could indicate an underlying condition such as lung or heart disease.

A bluish discoloration on skin or mucous surfaces occurs due to an absence of oxygen. This could indicate a serious medical problem, like respiratory or cardiovascular diseases.