Abdominal Assessment - Desklib

Running head: ABDOMINAL ASSESSMENT 1
Abdominal Assessment
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ABDOMINAL ASSESSMENT 2
Abdominal Assessment
Abdominal assessment is a critical component of a systematic diagnostic evaluation. The
assessment involves inspection, auscultation, percussion, and palpation. This process is quite
distinct from the other body systems’ examination processes which require inspection,
percussion, palpation, and auscultation. In abdominal assessment, inspection involves first
looking at the abdomen; including inspecting for symmetry whilst standing at the patient’s side
(Brown et al. 2015). The inspection would aid in the identification of the abdomen’s contour
whether protuberant, scaphoid or flat. Subsequently, it is important to examine the abdomen to
note any change in skin color or pigmentation. For example, Grey Tuner’s sign indicates
retroperitoneal bleeding while a bluish colour at the umbilicus (Cullen’s sign) indicates bleeding
in the peritoneum. The inspection would also involve examining nodules and lesions.
The second phase referred to as auscultation involves listening to the gut sounds. The
ordinary gut sounds gurgle at a rate of 5-35 per minute (Osborne et al., 2015). Declined sounds
indicate a decline in gut activity. Remarkably, gut sounds can decrease after injury, abdominal
infection, or abdominal surgery. The assessment involves detecting ominous signs (absent
sounds) and can be caused by infarction, intestinal ischemia, intestinal perforation, and intestinal
obstruction.
The third, percussion, provides three outcomes including tympany (pitch higher than the
lungs), resonance (hollow and low-pitched sounds), and dullness (flat sounds without echoes).
The assessment involves the nurse or clinician percussing all the four abdomen’s quadrants. The
nurse hyperextends the central finger of his or her non-dominant hand and places the middle
finger against the patient’s abdomen firmly (Lampert, Lampert & Lampert, 2018). Using the end
of his or her dominant central finger, the nurse uses a swift flick of his or her wrist to airstrike