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The apex beat may also be displaced by other conditions: Pleural or pulmonary diseases; Deformities of the chest wall or the thoracic vertebrae; Sometimes, the apex beat may not be palpable, either due to a thick chest wall, or conditions where the stroke volume is reduced; such as during ventricular tachycardia or shock.
The presence of a murmur at the apex can be misinterpreted as mitral regurgitation. However, the apical murmur of the Gallavardin phenomenon does not radiate to the left axilla and is accentuated by a slowing of the heart rate (such as a compensatory pause after a premature beat) whereas the mitral regurgitation murmur does not change. [2]
The apex beat is assessed for size, amplitude, location, impulse and duration. There are specific terms to describe the sensation such as tapping, heaving and thrusting. Often the apex beat is felt diffusely over a large area, in this case the most inferior and lateral position it can be felt in should be described as well as the location of ...
Pulsus paradoxus is not related to pulse rate or heart rate, and it is not a paradoxical rise in systolic pressure. Normally, blood pressure drops less precipitously than 10 mmHg during inhalation. Pulsus paradoxus is a sign that is indicative of several conditions, most commonly pericardial effusion .
Upon auscultation, this sign is an extra heart sound of to-and-fro character, typically with three components, two systolic and one diastolic. [1] It resembles the sound of squeaky leather and often is described as grating, scratching, or rasping. The sound seems very close to the ear and may seem louder than or may even mask the other heart ...
A gallop rhythm refers to a (usually abnormal) rhythm of the heart on auscultation. [1] It includes three or four sounds, thus resembling the sounds of a gallop.. The normal heart rhythm contains two audible heart sounds called S 1 and S 2 that give the well-known "lub-dub" rhythm; they are caused by the closing of valves in the heart.
The grading gives a number to the intensity from 1 to 6: [2] [3] The palpable murmur is known as thrill, which can be felt on grade 4 or higher. The murmur is only audible on listening carefully for some time. The murmur is faint but immediately audible on placing the stethoscope on the chest. A loud murmur readily audible but with no thrill. [4]
If the heart rate is also very fast (tachycardia), it can become difficult to distinguish between S 3 and S 4 thus producing a single sound called a summation gallop. S 3 is a dull, low-pitched sound best heard with the bell placed over the cardiac apex with the patient lying in the left lateral decubitus position. This heart sound when present ...