ATI Medical Surgical Proctored Exam Related

Review ATI Medical Surgical Proctored Exam related questions and content

A 54-year-old client has cholelithiasis and is admitted for an elective cholecystectomy. The client is 5 feet 3 inches tall, weighs 205 pounds, and has smoked one pack of cigarettes per day for 35 years. The client will be NPO at midnight. When the client's spouse asks why the client cannot have breakfast the morning before surgery, the nurse should explain:

  • A. Your spouse is a good-sized person and it won't hurt to miss breakfast.
  • B. Eating breakfast and having food in the stomach could cause vomiting and aspiration during surgery.
  • C. Your spouse will be too busy in the morning preparing for surgery to have time to eat breakfast.
  • D. Not eating breakfast will prevent fecal contamination of the abdominal operative site.
Correct Answer: B

Rationale: The client's size has nothing to do with an NPO status. Clients are at greatest risk for aspiration and vomiting during surgery when food and/or liquids are in the stomach. Preparation on the morning of surgery is time consuming, but it does not affect a client's NPO status. The gallbladder lies under the surface of the liver and is a part of the biliary tract, not the intestinal tract. Cholecystectomy does not involve the intestinal tract or its contents.