Final answer:
Physical assessment findings in a tension pneumothorax include unequal chest excursion, hyper-resonance upon chest percussion, and absent breath sounds, but not loud breath sounds as airflow is usually reduced or absent due to the collapsed lung.
Step-by-step explanation:
A tension pneumothorax is a serious and potentially life-threatening condition often seen in the medical field where air enters the pleural space and cannot escape, leading to increased pressure on the lungs and other structures within the thorax. This condition leads to various physical assessment findings such as unequal chest excursion, due to one side of the chest not moving well with breathing, hyper-resonance upon chest percussion, an audible indication that there is excess air in the pleural space, and absent breath sounds, explaining the lack of normal breathing sounds on one side due to the collapsed lung. However, loud breath sounds are not typically a finding in tension pneumothorax; instead, one would expect diminished or absent breath sounds because the presence of air in the pleural space prevents normal lung expansion and the effective transmission of breathing sounds. It is critical to accurately identify these clinical signs to provide timely and appropriate treatment.