NCLEX RN Practice Questions Exam Cram Related

Review NCLEX RN Practice Questions Exam Cram related questions and content

The nurse is caring for a newborn with a suspected diagnosis of imperforate anus. The nurse monitors the infant, knowing that which is a clinical manifestation associated with this disorder?

  • A. Bile-stained fecal emesis
  • B. The passage of currant jelly-like stools
  • C. Failure to pass meconium stool in the first 24 hours after birth
  • D. Sausage-shaped mass palpated in the upper right abdominal quadrant
Correct Answer: C

Rationale: Imperforate anus is the incomplete development or absence of the anus in its normal position in the perineum. Failure to pass meconium stool within the first 24 hours after birth is a key clinical manifestation associated with this disorder. This finding should prompt further assessment to confirm the suspected diagnosis. Other assessment findings in imperforate anus may include absence or stenosis of the anal rectal canal, presence of an anal membrane, and an external fistula to the perineum. Options A, B, and D describe findings typically noted in intussusception, a different condition characterized by bowel obstruction and telescoping of the intestines that can present with bile-stained fecal emesis, the passage of currant jelly-like stools, and a sausage-shaped mass palpated in the upper right abdominal quadrant.