The technique of physical examination which uses the sense of touch?

Appeared in: KPSC Staff Nurse - 2015

Explanation

Palpation is the method of using the sense of touch to gather clinical information.
It involves using the hands and fingers to feel for characteristics such as temperature, moisture, texture, turgor, tenderness, and the size and location of organs or masses.
Different parts of the hand are used for specific assessments: the fingertips for fine tactile discrimination, the back of the hand for temperature, and the base of the fingers for vibration.

Option A: Auscultation uses the sense of hearing, not touch. It involves listening to internal body sounds, such as heart, lung, and bowel sounds, typically with a stethoscope.
Option B: Percussion involves tapping the body to produce sound waves. While it uses touch to tap, its primary purpose is to interpret the resulting sound to assess the density of underlying tissues (air, fluid, or solid).
Option D: Inspection uses the sense of sight. It is the process of deliberate and systematic visual observation of the patient.

Clinical Relevance

Nursing practice connection: This is primarily an exam-oriented knowledge point with limited direct bedside application, so retain Physical Assessment Techniques as background academic context rather than a clinical decision trigger.
The sequence of assessment is critical. For the abdomen, always auscultate before percussing or palpating (IAPP) to ensure bowel sounds are not altered by the examination itself.
During palpation, always warm your hands, use a gentle approach, and palpate any known tender areas last to prevent patient discomfort and muscle guarding, which can interfere with the assessment.
What if? If a patient presents with acute abdominal pain in the right lower quadrant, the nurse should follow the IAPP sequence and palpate that quadrant last to avoid causing unnecessary pain and to get a more accurate assessment of the other quadrants first.

How to Approach the Question

First, identify the key phrase in the question: 'sense of touch'.
Next, recall the four primary techniques of physical examination: Inspection, Palpation, Percussion, and Auscultation.
Define each technique based on the primary sense it employs.
Inspection is seeing. Auscultation is hearing. Percussion is tapping to create sound. Palpation is feeling or touching.
Match the key phrase 'sense of touch' with its corresponding technique, which is Palpation.

Concept Tested & Keywords

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E6 Nursing Fundamentals Potter Perry 12e Part 3 p. 63-65

E6 Nursing Fundamentals Taylor p. 381-383

Practise the full KPSC Staff Nurse - 2015

Attempt every question from this paper in a timed mock, then review the full solution for each one.