Dictionary

Signs and symptoms

What a client reports and what a nurse observes, named the way charts and handoffs name them.

pruritusItching of the skin.

psoas signLower abdominal pain when the right thigh is stretched backward or lifted against resistance.

pulmonary edemaA buildup of fluid in the air sacs and tissues of the lungs.

pulse pressureThe difference between the systolic and the diastolic blood pressure.

pulselessnessThe absence of a pulse that can be felt.

pulsus paradoxusA fall of more than 10 mm Hg in systolic blood pressure during breathing in.

purpuraPurple or red-brown patches on the skin caused by bleeding under the skin, which do not fade when pressed.

purulentContaining or made of pus: thick, cloudy fluid that may be yellow, green, tan or brown.

pusThick fluid made of white blood cells, dead tissue and germs that collects at a site of infection.

pustuleA small raised bump on the skin filled with pus.

quickeningThe first movements of the fetus that a pregnant person can feel.

raccoon eyesBruising around both eyes, like a raccoon's mask.

radiateTo spread outward from one place to another, as pain can spread from where it starts.

rashAn area of skin that has changed in color or texture, often red, bumpy, scaly or itchy.

rebound tendernessPain that is worse when a hand pressing into the abdomen is quickly let go than when it is pressed in.

reddenedTurned red, used for skin or tissue that has become redder than normal.

referred painPain felt in a part of the body away from where the problem actually is.

reflexAn automatic body response to something that stimulates it, which happens without thought, such as the knee jerk.

regurgitationA flowing backward: blood leaking back through a heart valve, or stomach contents coming back up into the mouth.

respiratory depressionBreathing that is too slow or too shallow to move enough air in and out of the lungs.

respiratory distressDifficulty breathing severe enough that a person has to work hard to move air in and out.

retentionThe keeping in of something the body would normally let go, such as urine, fluid or stool.

retractionA drawing back or pulling in of tissue; in breathing, the skin sinking in between, below or above the ribs with each breath.

Reynolds pentadFive findings together: fever, pain in the upper right abdomen, jaundice, low blood pressure and confusion.

rhinorrheaA runny nose: thin fluid draining from the nose.

rhonchiLow-pitched, rumbling or snoring lung sounds heard with a stethoscope.

rigidityStiffness: a muscle, limb or the wall of the belly that resists being moved or pressed.

rousableAble to be woken up.

Rovsing signPain felt in the right lower abdomen when the examiner presses on the left lower abdomen.

scabA dry, hard crust of dried blood and fluid that forms over a healing wound.

seizureA sudden burst of abnormal electrical activity in the brain that changes movement, feeling, behavior or awareness.

setting-sun signEyes turned downward so that a strip of white shows above the colored part of the eye, like a sun setting below the horizon.

shortness of breathThe feeling of not getting enough air or of having to work hard to breathe.

signSomething about a person's body that another person can see, hear, feel or measure, such as a fever, a rash or a fast pulse.

sign and symptomThe findings of an illness taken together: what can be seen or measured (signs) and what the person feels and reports (symptoms).

sinus bradycardiaA regular heart rhythm that starts normally in the sinus node but runs slower than 60 beats per minute.

six P'sA memory aid listing six things checked in a limb: pain, pallor, pulselessness, paresthesia, paralysis and poikilothermia (coldness).

sneezingA sudden, forceful burst of air out through the nose and mouth, set off by irritation inside the nose.

snoringRough, noisy breathing sounds made during sleep.

sore throatPain, scratchiness or irritation of the throat, often worse when swallowing.

spasmA sudden, involuntary tightening of a muscle or of the muscle in a hollow organ or tube.

spasticityMuscle stiffness and tightness that resists stretching, more strongly the faster a limb is moved.

splenomegalyEnlargement of the spleen.

strawberry tongueA swollen, red tongue with enlarged bumps on its surface, looking like a strawberry.

stridorA high-pitched, harsh sound made while breathing, usually heard when breathing in.

suicidal ideationThinking about, considering or planning suicide.

sundowningConfusion, restlessness or agitation that gets worse in the late afternoon and evening in some people with dementia.

sweatingGiving off salty fluid from glands in the skin, which cools the body as it dries.

swellingAn abnormal enlargement of a body part, often from fluid, blood or inflammation in the tissue.

symptomSomething a person feels and reports that others cannot see or measure, such as pain, nausea or dizziness.