A stable male patient, who was just admitted for left-lower-lobe pneumonia, tells the nurse that his cough is nonproductive. When assessing the patient's breath sounds, the nurse suspects consolidation when, over the left lower lobe, she detects

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Absent breath sounds suggest consolidation, which is consistent with left-lower-lobe pneumonia. Rales and rhonchi are adventitious breath sounds that are associated with fluid or mucus in the airways, which is not necessarily indicative of consolidation. Stridor is a high-pitched wheezing sound that is typically associated with upper airway obstruction, rather than pneumonia.

A Stable Male Patient, Who Was Just Admitted for Left-Lower-Lobe