You might find it helpful to encourage the person to use relaxation techniques
such as imagery or deep breathing. With deep palpation (as for abdominal contents), intermittent
pressure is better than one long, continuous palpation. Avoid any situation in which deep palpation
could cause internal injury or pain
While x-ray images are more accurate than percussion, they are
not always available. Your hands are always available, are easily portable, and give instant
feedback.
Avoid placement over the ribs, scapulae, and other bony prominences. Percussing
over a bone yields no data because it always sounds “dull.” Lift the rest of the stationary hand up
off the person's skin (Fig. 8.2). A hand resting on the skin will dampen the produced vibrations,
making them difficult to interpret. Check your technique to assure that only the distal joint and tip
of your middle finger are touching the person
Aim
for just behind the nail bed or at the distal interphalangeal joint; the goal is to hit the portion of the
finger that is pushing the hardest into the skin surface. Flex the striking finger so that its tip, not the
finger pad, makes contact. It hits directly at right angles to the stationary finger.
The thickness of the person's body wall
will be a factor. You need a stronger percussion stroke for persons with obese or very muscular
body walls.
uality (timbre), a subjective difference caused by the distinctive overtones of a sound; and
The slope of the earpiece should point forward toward your nose. This
matches the natural slope of your ear canal and efficiently blocks out environmental sound. If
necessary, twist the earpieces to parallel the slope of your ear canals. The earpieces should fit
snugly,
Hold the diaphragm firmly against the person's skin, firm enough to leave a
slight ring afterward. The bell endpiece has a deep, hollow, cuplike shape. It is best for soft, lowpitched
sounds such as extra heart sounds or murmurs. Hold it lightly against the person's skin,
just enough that it forms a perfect seal. Holding it any harder causes the person's skin to act as a
diaphragm, obliterating the low-pitched sounds
Some newer stethoscopes have one endpiece with a “tunable diaphragm.” This enables you to
listen to both low- and high-frequency sounds without rotating the endpiece. For low-frequency
sounds (traditional bell mode), hold the endpiece very lightly on the skin; for high-frequency
sounds (traditional diaphragm mode), press the endpiece firmly on the skin. Make sure that you
familiarize yourself with your stethoscope to assure proper use.
Before you can evaluate body sounds, you must eliminate any
Wear gloves when the potential exists for contact with any body fluids (e.g., blood, mucous
membranes, body fluids, drainage, open skin lesions). However, wearing gloves is not a protective
substitute for washing hands because gloves may have undetectable holes or become torn during
use, or hands may become contaminated as gloves are removed. Wear a gown, mask, and
protective eyewear when the potential exists for any blood or body fluid spattering (e.g., suctioning,
arterial puncture)
But some sharing of information builds rapport and increases the person's confidence
in you as an examiner. It also gives the person a little more control in a situation in which it is easy
to feel completely helpless