How is a radial pulse correctly assessed?

• A. Place index and middle fingers on the radial artery at the wrist (thumb side), count beats for 30 seconds and multiply by 2.
• B. Place fingertips on the carotid artery in the neck and count for 60 seconds.
• C. Use a pulse oximeter to read oxygen saturation.
• D. Auscultate the heart with a stethoscope for 15 seconds.

Answer: (A)

Assessing a radial pulse is about feeling the heart rate by palpating a peripheral artery at the wrist and converting what you feel into beats per minute. Place the index and middle fingers on the radial artery at the inside of the wrist, just below the base of the thumb, and press gently to feel the beats. For a regular rhythm, count the beats for 30 seconds and multiply by 2 to obtain the heart rate. If the rhythm is irregular, count for a full 60 seconds to ensure accuracy. The other methods described don’t measure the radial pulse in the same way: palpating the carotid artery is a different site and is not the standard method for assessing the radial pulse; a pulse oximeter reads oxygen saturation and provides a pulse rate only as an indirect measure, not the manual palpation of the wrist artery; auscultating the heart with a stethoscope checks heart sounds, not the wrist pulse.