Rhonchi are best described as?

• A. Higher pitched wheezes heard on inspiration
• B. Lower pitched sounds resembling snoring or rattling, continuous in the upper airway
• C. Crackles heard during exhalation
• D. No abnormal sounds

Answer: (B)

Rhonchi are low-pitched, coarse airway sounds that come from secretions in the larger airways. They sound like snoring or rattling and tend to be continuous through the breath, often louder on exhalation, and they may improve after coughing or suctioning as the secretions move or clear.

This helps distinguish rhonchi from other lung sounds. Wheezes are high-pitched and musical, usually from narrowed smaller airways. Crackles are brief, popping sounds typically heard during inspiration (and sometimes early expiration) from fluid in the alveoli or small airways. Hearing no abnormal sounds would not explain a patient with noticeable secretions in the airways.