You take another set of measurements.
Category: Advancing Modules
Blood Pressure
Jean has left arm weakness.
Causes of increased Heart Rate
Q. Which of the following are causes of increased heart rate in acute stroke?
Common implications of not recognising abnormal HR or rhythm include;
- Progressive deterioration in stability of the cardiovascular system
- Potential to lead to changes in blood pressure
- Low blood pressure leading to poor perfusion of important organs e.g. brain, kidney, skin
Responses and actions if changes in heart rate/rhythm
- The detection of tachycardia requires clinical examination and investigation of the patient to look for causes of tachycardia outlined above.
- Correct identification of cause of tachycardia and appropriate treatment required to bring heart rate back to normal range
Heart Rate
Case 1: Jean
Blood Pressure and Heart Rate
Jean is a 79 year old lady who lives alone and was found on the floor of her home by her home help who had not seen her since the previous day. She was taken to hospital and three hours later was admitted to the Stroke unit. She tells you that her left arm and leg feel weak and she is unable to raise her left arm off the bed.
Physiological monitoring
It is important to measure the following in ALL stroke patients.
Go through the slides below for more information.
Not only is it important to recognise the abnormal readings, you must be aware of the importance of recognising the sudden changes in parameters. Now let’s look at each of these in a little more detail.
Assessments
Upon admission to an acute stroke unit a patient needs to have a number of physiological parameters monitored.
Which five of these physiological parameters is most important to optimise the patient’s brain recovery?
Let’s look at these physiological parameters in more detail
Learning points
On completion of this module you will be expected to have a critical understanding of the relevance and importance of physiological monitoring in stroke patients.
You will learn:
- The important physiological parameters that you can monitor
- Alternative methods of monitoring each parameter including the common pitfalls which need to be avoided
- Acceptable ranges of values for each parameter and the most important common causes of deviation from normal values
- Possible effects on patient outcomes of uncorrected abnormal parameters
- Appropriate responses and actions you should make to abnormal readings
- The benefits that your prompt interventions have on patient outcomes
- To adapt your monitoring of different physiological parameters as the patient’s condition changes
The following physiological parameters will be covered in this module:
- Blood pressure
- Heart rate / pulse
- Blood glucose
- Oxygen saturation and respiratory rate
- Temperature
- Conscious level
Introduction (continued)
On completion of this module you should have a critical understanding of the relevance and importance of monitoring in acute stroke patients, understanding the relevance and the implications of investigation and management of individual patients.
