What it means
In everyday nursing use, respirations are breaths, one breath in and one out counted as one. The word also names the whole process of gas exchange: oxygen moves from the air in the alveolusal-VEE-uh-lus (plural alveoli, al-VEE-uh-ly)One of the tiny air sacs at the ends of the smallest airways in the lungs.Full entry into the blood, and carbon dioxide moves out to be breathed away. The respiratory rateRES-pur-uh-tor-ee RAYTThe number of breaths a person takes in one minute.Full entry is one of the vital signsVY-tul SYNZThe basic body measurements: temperature, pulse, breathing rate and blood pressure, often with oxygen saturation and pain.Full entry .
For the nurse
Count respirations for 30 seconds and double it if regular, or for a full minute if irregular, without telling the client, since people change their breathing when they know it is watched. Note the rate, depth, rhythm and effort.
In a chart
"Respirations 18, even and unlabored."
At a glance
| Spanish | respiración |
|---|---|
| Also written | respirations |
Related terms
-pnea
A word ending that means breathing.
respiratory rate
The number of breaths a person takes in one minute.
oxygenation
The process of getting oxygen into the blood and delivering it to the body's tissues.
tachypnea
A breathing rate faster than normal, above 20 breaths per minute in an adult.