Word parts
What it means
The gurgles of gas and fluid moving through the intestines are bowel sounds. When they are rushing, high-pitched and almost constant, they are called hyperactive; sometimes they can be heard without a stethoscope. They are heard with diarrhea, gastroenteritis, after a large meal and early in a bowel obstruction.
For the nurse
Listen with the diaphragm of the stethoscope in all four quadrants after inspecting the abdomen and before palpating it. Record the sounds as normal, hyperactive or hypoactive, and report new hyperactive sounds with pain, swelling, vomiting or no passing of gas.
In a chart
"Bowel sounds hyperactive in all four quadrants; three loose stools this shift."
At a glance
| Also written | hyperactive bowel sounds |
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Related terms
diarrhea
Loose or watery stools, usually three or more times a day or more often than normal for the person.
auscultation
Listening to the sounds inside the body, usually with a stethoscope.
hyper-
A word beginning that means above, over or more than normal.