Unit 4: Medical Technologies

- any format of machinery that is used to operate or perform medical procedures

To know if something is “wrong” you need to know what is “right” Primary Vital Signs and Normal

Ranges

http://www.med.ucla.edu/wilkes/intro.html

Primary Vital Signs- Allow for a basic assessment of body

function

1. Temperature

2. Blood Pressure

3. Pulse (heart rate)

4. Respiratory Rate

Each of these has a normal range, a range that’s common in 95% of the population

The normal range will vary with sex, age, fitness, ethnicity, etc.

1. Temperature Proteins are affected by body

temperatures, therefore we usually thermoregulate to maintain a constant core temperature (36.8 +/- 0.7)

How do we thermoregulate?

When we are hot: we sweat, the hairs on our bodies lie flat and our blood vessels become wider (vasodilation)

When we are cold: we shiver, we get goose bumps to trap heat and we vasoconstrict

High core body temperature can indicate

Infection (a temporary re-setting of the thermostat, part of non-specific immunity)

Hyperthermia (loss of thermoregulation due to heat stroke or drug reaction)

low core body temperature (hypothermia) is normally due to exposure to low temperatures

2. Blood Pressure Pressure exerted by circulating blood

on the walls of the blood vessels

Composed of two readings Systolic: maximal contraction (ventricular)

of heart (115 mm Hg) Diastolic: resting pressure (70 mm Hg)

115/70 is “normal” http://www.pennmedicine.org/encyclopedi

a/em_DisplayAnimation.aspx?gcid=000013&ptid=17

Measured using a sphygmomanometer

http://www.sumanasinc.com/webcontent/animations/content/bloodpressure.html

hypertension

Blood pressure is abnormally high A risk factor for strokes, heart

attacks, heart failure Shortens life expectancyCauses: Very complex, but risk factors

include sedentary life style, obesity, salt sensitivity

Classification

Systolic pressure

Diastolic pressure

mmHg

kPa (kN/m2)

mmHgkPa (kN/m2)

Normal90–119

12–15.9 60–79 8.0–10.5

Prehypertension

120–139

16.0–18.5

80–8910.7–11.9

Stage 1140–159

18.7–21.2

90–9912.0–13.2

Stage 2 ≥160 ≥21.3 ≥100 ≥13.3

Isolated systolichypertension

≥140 ≥18.7 <90 <12.0

Source: American Heart Association (2003).[8]

hypotension

Blood pressure abnormally low Usually shows as dizziness,

sometimes fainting Can be due to hormonal changes,

widening of blood vessels, side effects of medicines, etc.

3. Pulse (heart rate) Physical expansion of the artery Varies with age, in an adult 50-80

beats per minute Bradycardia: below 60 bpm Tachycardia: above 100 bpm

DIY: pair up and exercise your heart!

4. Respiration Rate

Normal adult 12-2o breaths per minute

Age

Normal heart rate

(beats per minute)[15]

Normal respiratory rate

(breaths per minute)[16]

Newborn 100-160 [17] 30-50

0–5 months 90-150 25-40

6–12 months 80-140 20-30

1–3 years 80-130 20-30

3–5 years 80-120 20-30

6–10 years 70-110 15-30

11–14 years 60-105 12-20

14+ years 60-100 12-20