Question

When assessing your patient's pain, he says it started in his chest but has spread to his legs. This is an example of what part of the OPQRST mnemonic?

a)Onset
b)Quality
c)Region/radiation
d)Severity

Answer 1

The patient's pain spreading from the chest to the legs is categorized as 'Region/radiation' in the OPQRST mnemonic, and is crucial for identifying the source of pain.

Step-by-step explanation:

When a patient reports that their pain started in one region, such as the chest, and has spread to another, like the legs, it falls under the category of Region/radiation in the OPQRST mnemonic used by healthcare providers for the assessment of pain. This mnemonic helps in categorizing and understanding the characteristics of the patient's pain to provide accurate diagnosis and treatment. 'Region' indicates the location where the pain started and to where it has spread, which is sometimes referred to as referred pain. This is a crucial concept, as referred pain can be an indication of the pain's source; for example, in cases such as cardiac pain being felt in the left arm.