What it means
A plastic breathing exerciser with a mouthpiece and a piston or ball that rises as the client breathes in. Seeing the result encourages deep breaths, which open the small air sacs and help clear mucus. It is used mostly after surgery, especially of the chest or abdomen, and during bed rest, to prevent collapsed lung areas (atelectasis) and pneumonia. Using it is called incentive spirometry.
For the nurse
Teach the client to sit upright, breathe out, seal the lips around the mouthpiece, breathe in slowly and deeply, hold the breath for a few seconds, then breathe out and rest. The usual goal is 10 times every hour while awake. Hold a pillow against an abdominal incision to make coughing less painful.
At a glance
| Abbreviations | IS (ambiguous on its own) |
|---|---|
| Spanish | espirómetro de incentivo |
| Also written | incentive spirometry, incentive spirometers, incentive spirometer’s |
Related terms
postoperative
Describing the time after surgery, from the end of the operation until recovery.
pneumonia
An infection of one or both lungs in which the air sacs fill with fluid or pus.
alveolus
One of the tiny air sacs at the ends of the smallest airways in the lungs.
airway
The passages that carry air into and out of the lungs, from the nose and mouth to the smallest air tubes.