Cardiac Nursing

Beginner guide to reading an EKG strip at the bedside — rate calculation, regular vs. irregular rhythms, P wave recognition, and common rhythm identification for telemetry monitoring.

Advanced ECG interpretation — interval measurement, bundle branch block identification, ST and T wave analysis, AV block patterns, and a systematic 9-step clinical reasoning method for nurses.

Core telemetry monitoring skills for nurses — lead placement, artifact recognition, alarm management, monitoring responsibilities, and escalation considerations for cardiac patients.

Cardioversion vs defibrillation for nurses — synchronization, indications, contraindications, energy settings, nursing considerations, and critical safety priorities for electrical therapy.

Immediate recognition of lethal cardiac rhythms — ventricular fibrillation, pulseless ventricular tachycardia, pulseless electrical activity, and asystole — with nursing priorities for each.

Acute coronary syndrome guide for nurses — unstable angina, NSTEMI, and STEMI pathophysiology, risk factors, clinical presentation, and nursing priorities for NCLEX and clinical practice.

STEMI vs NSTEMI for nurses — ECG differences, coronary occlusion, troponin findings, treatment priorities, reperfusion timing, and nursing implications for NCLEX and clinical practice.

Chest pain assessment for nurses — OPQRST framework, red flag findings, cardiac vs non-cardiac differentiation, associated symptoms, emergency response priorities, and documentation for NCLEX and clinical practice.

Cardiac biomarkers for nurses — troponin I, troponin T, CK-MB, and BNP: normal values, rise time, peak, duration, lab trends, clinical interpretation, and nursing implications for NCLEX and clinical practice.

Stenosis vs regurgitation and the four common lesions (mitral stenosis, mitral regurgitation, aortic stenosis, aortic regurgitation), murmurs, the aortic-stenosis triad, and valve repair or replacement nursing care.

Infected valve vegetations, risk factors like IV drug use and prosthetic valves, classic signs (new murmur, fever, Janeway lesions, Osler nodes), embolic complications, long IV antibiotics, and prophylaxis.

Pleuritic chest pain relieved by sitting forward, the pericardial friction rub and diffuse ST elevation, and the progression to a pericardial effusion and tamponade (Beck's triad, pulsus paradoxus, the pericardiocentesis emergency).

The three types (dilated, hypertrophic, restrictive), how each impairs the heart, the sudden-cardiac-death risk in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, heart-failure management, and nursing care including ICDs.

EKG rhythm chart for nurses — 14 cardiac rhythms with rate, regularity, P wave, PR interval, QRS, and key bedside recognition features. Covers NSR, sinus rhythms, AV blocks, SVT, AFib, VT, VF, PEA, and asystole.

Side-by-side comparison of major cardiac rhythms — NSR, sinus bradycardia, sinus tachycardia, atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter, SVT, ventricular tachycardia, and ventricular fibrillation.

Side-by-side comparison of all four degrees of AV block — first-degree, Mobitz I, Mobitz II, and third-degree complete heart block with ECG features, causes, and clinical urgency.

ECG waveform components reference — P wave, PR interval, QRS complex, ST segment, T wave, and QT interval with normal values, electrical significance, and abnormality indicators.

Vaughan Williams antiarrhythmic classification — Class I through Class IV with channel mechanisms, representative drugs, primary indications, and nursing considerations.

Side-by-side comparison of defibrillation and synchronized cardioversion — synchronization, indications, energy settings, patient status, timing, sedation, and critical safety considerations.

ACS comparison chart for nurses — stable angina, unstable angina, NSTEMI, and STEMI compared by ECG findings, troponin status, coronary occlusion, urgency, and treatment for NCLEX and clinical practice.

Troponin interpretation chart for nurses — normal, mild elevation, rising trend, peak values, and downtrending with possible meanings and clinical significance for NCLEX and clinical practice.

Coronary artery territories chart for nurses — artery, areas supplied, ECG leads affected, MI location, and common complications for LAD, LCx, RCA, LMCA, and posterior descending artery.

Chest pain differential chart for nurses — ACS, pulmonary embolism, aortic dissection, GERD, musculoskeletal pain, and pericarditis compared by pain characteristics, associated findings, and urgency.

Cardiac marker timeline chart — troponin I, troponin T, high-sensitivity troponin, CK-MB, myoglobin, BNP, and NT-proBNP: elevation onset, peak timing, duration, normal ranges, serial draw protocols, clinical use, and NCLEX application.

Mitral stenosis, mitral regurgitation, aortic stenosis, and aortic regurgitation — the problem, murmur and timing, hallmark findings, and key nursing concern, side by side.

Dilated, hypertrophic, and restrictive cardiomyopathy — the muscle problem, common causes, the type of heart failure, hallmark features (including the HCM sudden-death risk), and nursing focus, side by side.

Endocarditis, pericarditis, and myocarditis — which layer of the heart is inflamed, the cause, the hallmark signs, the main danger, and the treatment, side by side.

Beck's triad (hypotension, muffled heart sounds, JVD), pulsus paradoxus, the other warning signs, the immediate nursing actions, and the pericardiocentesis emergency, in a fast recognition chart.