What it means
A measure of how elastic and full of fluid the skin is. The nurse lifts a fold of skin, often under the collarbone or over the breastbone, and lets go. Normal skin falls back at once; skin that stays raised for a moment ("tenting") may mean the body is low on fluid. Older adults lose skin elasticity, so turgor is less useful in them, and the forearm is a poor site to test.
For the nurse
Check turgor along with other signs of fluid status: mucous membranes, urine color and amount, weight, heart rate and blood pressure. In older adults, check it over the sternum or under the collarbone.
In a chart
"Skin turgor poor with tenting over clavicle; mucous membranes dry."
Related terms
edema
Swelling caused by extra fluid trapped in the body's tissues.
dehydration
A state in which the body has lost more water than it has taken in.
mucous membrane
The moist lining of body openings and passages, such as the mouth, nose, eyelids, gut and airways.