The nurse completes percussion of the abdomen on an adult client. Which finding is considered normal?

A. Listen for abnormal sounds. Before identifying abnormal sounds, it's essential to first establish a baseline by identifying the normal heart sounds (S1 and S2).

B. Identify S1 and S2 heart sounds. This is the correct first step in a systematic assessment of heart sounds. S1 ("lub") corresponds to the closure of the atrioventricular valves (mitral and tricuspid), while S2 ("dub") corresponds to the closure of the semilunar valves (aortic and pulmonic).

C. Move the stethoscope to the apical site. While the apical site is important for auscultating specific heart sounds, it's best to first identify S1 and S2 at the traditional auscultatory areas (aortic, pulmonic, tricuspid, and mitral).

D. Change to the bell of the stethoscope. The bell of the stethoscope is used to listen for lower-pitched sounds, but it's not typically used for identifying S1 and S2 heart sounds, which are higher-pitched.

A. Absolute dullness: This typically indicates fluid or a mass in the abdomen and is not a normal finding.

B. Absent sounds: Complete absence of bowel sounds can be a sign of an obstruction or ileus.

C. Pain: Pain during percussion suggests inflammation or irritation in the underlying organs.

D. Musical and drum like sounds: These are normal bowel sounds produced by gas and fluid movement within the intestines.