(7) Repeat examinations at intervals and record accurately. Look for trends
and changes such as:
(a) Significant rise in blood pressure.
(b) Slower pulse occurring late in the cycle.
f. Neurological Examination. A neurological examination is performed to
assess the patient's condition at the time he is being examined.
(1) AVPU for initial assessment. The letters AVPU stand for methods of
assessing a patient's responsiveness or unresponsiveness. The patient will be checked
for alertness, verbal responsiveness, pain responsiveness, and, finally,
unresponsiveness.
(a) Alertness to stimuli.
(b)
Responds to verbal stimulus.
(c)
Responds to painful stimulus.
(d) Unresponsive to stimuli.
(2) Glasgow coma scale for secondary assessment. Patient responses in
these areas are checked:
(a) Eye opening.
(b) Verbal response.
(c)
Motor response.
(3) Evaluation of pupils for equality/reaction to light. Check the patient's
eyes for normal or abnormal reactions as follows:
(a) Normal reactions include:
1 When exposed to light, the pupils constrict.
2 When light is shined into one pupil, the other pupil also
constricts.
(b) Abnormal reactions include:
1 Pupils are fixed and pinpoint.
MD0572
5-14
Previous Page
