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Emergency Medicine & First Aid vocabulary · Emergency Assessment (ABC)

Vital signs

Meaning in emergency medicine & first aid, with examples

/ˈvaɪtəl saɪnz/nounCore term

In emergency medicine & first aid, vital signs means: The basic measurements that show how the body is coping, usually pulse, breathing rate, blood pressure, oxygen saturation, temperature and level of consciousness.

In Turkish: yaşam bulguları, vital bulgular

How it is used

Paramedics take a first set of vital signs on scene and repeat them to spot changes on the way to hospital. Americans often say 'vitals' and British crews 'obs'. A handover usually includes the latest set and the trend.

Example sentences

  1. Vital signs on scene: pulse 110, BP 100 over 60, sats 94 percent.

  2. Repeat his vital signs every five minutes on the way in.

Common collocations

  • take vital signs
  • repeat vital signs
  • baseline vital signs
  • stable vital signs
  • pulseThe regular beat of the heart that you can feel where an artery is close to the skin, such as at the wrist or the side of the neck.
  • GCSShort for Glasgow Coma Scale: a score from 3 to 15 for level of consciousness, based on how a patient opens their eyes, speaks and moves.
  • primary surveyA fast, structured first check of a patient, usually in the ABCDE order, to find and deal with life-threatening problems.
  • handoverThe passing of a patient and the key information about them from one team to another, for example from an ambulance crew to emergency department staff.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Emergency Assessment (ABC)

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This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not medical advice.