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Vital Signs
Vital Signs
• Temperature
• Pulse
• Respirations
• Blood Pressure
• The fifth vital sign
– Pain
– Oxygen Saturation
Vital signs are temperature, pulse, respiration,
blood pressure and pain. A change in vital signs
may indicate a change in health.
Pyrexia
A body temperature above the usual range is
called pyrexia, hyperthermia, or fever.
Hyperpyrexia; is a very high fever usually above
41 °C and survival is rare when the temperature
Reaches 44 °C and death due to damaging
effects on the respiratory center.
The client who has a fever is referred to as febrile;
the one who does not is afebrile.
The signs and symptoms of fever: loss of appetite,
headache, hot, dry skin, flushed face, thirst and
general malaise. Young children or other people
with high fevers may experience periods of
delirium or seizures.
Nursing Interventions for Client's with fever:
Temperature scales
The body temperature is measure in degreed on
two scales: Celsius (centigrade) and Fahrenheit.
C= (Fahrenheit temperature – 32) * 5/9
F = (Celsius temperature * 9/5) +32
Pulse
• 1 to 3—mild pain.
• 4 to 6---moderate pain
• 7 to 10—severe pain
• Pain vs. pain and inflammation.
Judgement of pain intensity
0 max
For children:
Visual Analog Scale
VAS
NAS 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10