Nokea
A client presents to the emergency department in respiratory compromise. The client's temperature is 102.4?°F, heart rate 88 beats/minute and regular, and blood pressure 138/76 mm Hg. The client is dyspneic, pale, and expectorating green-tinged sputum. The physician orders medications including antibiotics, antipyretics, nebulizer treatments, and IV fluids. A chest x-ray and sputum culture are to be completed. Which physician order would the nurse complete before beginning antibiotic therapy?
- A. Chest x-ray
- B. Sputum culture
- C. Nebulizer treatments
- D. Initiating IV fluids
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: The nurse would obtain a sputum culture for sensitivity before beginning antibiotic therapy. Obtaining a sputum culture after beginning antibiotics can skew results. Once the sputum culture results are returned, the antibiotic can be closely aligned to kill the organism, if present. The other orders can be prioritized according to client needs.
You may also like to solve these questions
A client arrives at the physician's office stating dyspnea; a productive cough for thick, green sputum; respirations of 28 breaths/minute, and a temperature of 102.8?°F The nurse auscultates the lung fields, which reveal poor air exchange in the right middle lobe. The nurse suspects a right middle lobe pneumonia. To be consistent with this anticipated diagnosis, which sound, heard over the chest wall when percussing, is anticipated?
- A. Tympanic
- B. Resonant
- C. Hyperresonant
- D. Dull
Correct Answer: D
Rationale: A dull percussed sound, heard over the chest wall, is indicative of little or no air movement in that area of the lung. Lung consolidation such as in pneumonia or fluid accumulation produces the dull sound. A tympanic sound is a high-pitched sound commonly heard over the stomach or bowel. A resonant sound is noted over normal lung tissue. A hyperresonant sound is an abnormal lower pitched sound that occurs when free air exists in disease processes such as pneumothorax.
The nurse is caring for a client with a decrease in airway diameter causing airway resistance. The client experiences coughing and mucus production. On lung assessment, which adventitious breath sounds are anticipated?
- A. Crackles
- B. Sonorous wheezes
- C. Rubs
- D. Sibilant wheezes
Correct Answer: D
Rationale: A decrease in airway diameter, such as in asthma, produces breath sounds of wheezes. Wheezes may be sibilant (hissing or whistling) or sonorous (full and deep). Sibilant wheezes (formerly called wheezes) are continuous musical sounds that can be heard during inspiration and expiration. They result from air passing through narrowed or partially obstructed air passages and are heard in clients with increased secretions. Sonorous wheezes (formerly called rhonchi) are lower pitched and are heard in the trachea and bronchi. Sonorous wheezes are coarse, rattling sounds similar to snoring usually caused by secretion in the bronchial tree. Crackles, also called rales, are crackling or rattling sounds signifying fluid or exudate in the lung fields. Rubs are secretions that can be heard in the large airway.
Including clients with a history of respiratory issues, for which diagnostic stud(ies) would the nurse screen the client for an allergy to contrast medium prior to testing?
- A. Lung scan
- B. Chest x-ray
- C. Pulmonary angiography
- D. Bronchoscopy
- E. Pulmonary function test
- F. Sputum culture
Correct Answer: A,C
Rationale: The nurse must be well educated in screening clients before diagnostic procedures, which include contrast medium for an allergy to iodine. A lung scan and pulmonary angiography both require contrast medium. A chest x-ray, bronchoscopy, sputum culture test, and pulmonary functions test do not require contrast medium.
A nurse is performing a physical assessment on a client who has a history of a respiratory infection. Which documentation, completed by the nurse, indicates improvement in an area of the lung affected by the infection?
- A. Lung fields documented as clear.
- B. Palpable vibrations over the chest wall when the client speaks.
- C. Decreased fremitus when the client feels the vibration in their chest.
- D. Dull sounds percussed over the lung tissue.
- E. Bronchial sounds heard only in the affected area.
Correct Answer: A
Rationale: To determine if the client's respiratory infection has resolved, the nurse should assess the client's normal respiratory status. Lungs will return to clear breath sounds. Palpable vibrations will be felt ,as they may be normal if there is no infection in the lungs. A client with consolidation of a lobe of the lung from pneumonia has increased tactile fremitus over that lobe. A decreased fremitus would indicate resolution of infection. Bronchial sounds will be noted over the upper lung fields. An increased fremitus is noted as the client speaks '99.' Dull percussed sounds indicate an area of consolidation or infection.
What would the instructor tell the students purulent fluid indicates?
- A. Cancer
- B. Infection
- C. Inflammation
- D. Heart failure
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: A small amount of fluid lies between the visceral and parietal pleurae. When excess fluid or air accumulates, the physician aspirates it from the pleural space by inserting a needle into the chest wall. This procedure, called thoracentesis, is performed with local anesthesia. Thoracentesis also may be used to obtain a sample of pleural fluid or a biopsy specimen from the pleural wall for diagnostic purposes such as a culture, sensitivity, or microscopic examination. Purulent fluid is the recommended diagnosis for infection. Serous fluid may be associated with cancer, inflammatory conditions, or heart failure.