The nurse is assessing the vital signs of a 20-year-old male marathon runner and documents the following vital signs: temperature-36$\degree$ C; pulse-48 beats per minute; respirations-14 breaths per minute; blood pressure-104/68 mm Hg. Which statement is true concerning these results?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

This is a normal finding for this patient. Although, in the adult, a heart rate less than 50 beats per minute is called bradycardia, this normally occurs in the well-trained athlete whose heart muscle develops along with the skeletal muscles. This is not tachycardia; tachycardia would be a pulse above 100 beats/minute. The patient's physician does not need to be called and the patient does not need to return in a week based on these findings. Instead, a heart rate less than 50 beats per minute in an adult is called bradycardia. However, this normally occurs in the well-trained athlete whose heart muscle develops along with the skeletal muscles.

The Nurse Is Assessing the Vital Signs of a 20-Year-Old °\degree°

The Nurse Is Assessing the Vital Signs of a 20-Year-Old $\degree$