UNIVERSITY OF SAINT LOUIS TUGUEGARAO

SCHOOL OF EDUCATION, ARTS, SCIENCES AND HEALTH

MODULE
MAGALALAG WEST, ENRILE, CAGAYAN

“VITAL SIGNS TAKING, LEADS TO HEALTHY BEING”

VITAL SIGNS

Are important indicators of health states of the body.

Various determinations that provide basic body conditions of the patient.

Vital signs are taken:

 When a person is aditted to a health care facility

 Several times a day for hospitalized patients
 Before and after surgery
 After some nursing procedures
 Before medications given that affect the respiratory or circulatory system
 Whenever the person complains of pain,shortness of breath, rapid heart rate, or not
feeling well
 With the person at rest in a lying or sitting position

Vital signs- used to assess the body system’s conditions

 Pulse
 Respiration
 Blood pressure
 Temperature
 Pain – fifth vital sign

Factors that affect vital signs

 Illness
 Emotions- anger , fear, anxiety , pain
 Exercise and activity
 Age
 Sex
 Environment – weather
 Food and fluid intake
 Medications
 Time of day
 Noise
 A change in one vital sign causes a change to others.
HEART RATE

Number of heartbeats measured in a unit of time, most commonly in beats per minute (bpm).

RESPIRATION

-The bodily process of inhalation and exhalation.

-The process of taking in oxygen from inhaled air and releasing carbon dioxide by exhalation.

BLOOD PRESSURE

A measure of how hard blood is pressing against artery walls. Blood pressure is recorded as two
numbers; the top number is called systolic pressure and the bottom number is called diastolic
pressure.

BODY TEMPERATURE

A measure to body’s internal temperature.

PAIN

Is a symptom not a vital sign. Pain is an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience
associated with actual orpotential tissue damage or described in terms of such.

Sensory component

 Physical aspect of pain

Emotional component

 Tolerance to pain
 Depression
 Anxiety

Classification of pain

o ACUTE- pain of recent onset/sudden onset

o CHRONIC- last for more than 3 months, cannot identify cause pain persist even after
wound is healed
o CANCER-progressive, many different cause, may be a mixture of acute and chronic
pain
o NON CANCER- aute or chronic
o NOCICEPTIVE/ PHYSIOLOGICAL PAIN
 obvious tissue injury or illness
 somatic – bones and tissues- well localized
 visceral pain – abdomen, thoracic cavity
 nature of pain- sharp or dull
o NEUROPATHIC/ PATHOLOGIC PAIN
 Nervous system is damaged or abnormality;
 May not see tissue injury
 Nature of pain; shooting+numbness, pins and needles, not well localized
 AVERAGE VITAL SIGN RANGES BY AGE

AGE PULSE RATE RESPIRATORY RATE BLOOD PRESSURE

Newborn 120-160 40-60 80/40
1 year 80-140 30-40 82/44
3 years 80-120 25-30 86/50
5 years 70-115 20-25 90/52
7 years 70-115 20-25 94/54
10 years 70-115 15-20 100/60
15years 70-90 15-20 110/64
Adult 60-80 12-20 120/80

AVERAGE BODY TEMPERATURE RANGES BY AGE

0-2 YEARS 3-10 YEARS 11-65 YEARS >65 YEARS

ORAL - 95.9 – 99.5 97.6 – 99.6 96.5 – 98.5
RECTAL 97.9 - 100.4 97.9 – 100.4 98.6 -100.6 97.1 -99.2
AXILLARY 94.5 - 99.1 96.6 – 98 95.3 – 98.4 96 - 97.4
EAR 97.5 - 100.4 97 – 100 96.6 -99.7 96.4- 99.5
CORE 97.5 - 100 97.5 - 100 98.2 -100.2 96.6 – 98.8