Chapter 35 --> Geriatric Emergencies

A productive cough, fever, and chills in an 80-year-old patient with a compromised immune system should make you MOST suspicious for:

pneumonia

When caring for a geriatric patient with a traumatic injury, it is important to consider that:

the injury may have been preceded by a medical condition.

Which of the following is NOT a reason why the exact extent and prevalence of elder abuse is unknown?

Human resource agencies fail to investigate.

Which of the following statements regarding suicide in the older patient is correct?

Older patients tend to use more lethal means than younger patients.

Which of the following statements regarding the aging process is correct?

The process of aging is gradual, and the rate at which a person loses functions does not increase with age.

Osteoporosis is defined as:

a decrease in bone mass or density

You receive a call for a sick person. When you arrive, you find the patient, a 75-year-old male, lying unresponsive in his bed. His respirations are slow and irregular and his pulse is slow and weak. His daughter tells you that he fell the day before, but refused to allow her to call 9-1-1. His past medical history is significant for hypothyroidism, deep vein thrombosis, heavy alcohol use, and liver cirrhosis. His medications include blood thinners and vitamins. You should be MOST suspicious that this patient is experiencing:

a subdural hematoma.

When assessing an older patient who has multiple bruises in various stages of healing, the EMT should do all of the following, EXCEPT:

accuse a caregiver of physical abuse.

A 73-year-old female experienced a syncopal episode while watching TV. She is now conscious, but is diaphoretic, tachycardic, and hypotensive. Your assessment reveals abdominal tenderness and a pulsating mass to the left of her umbilicus. You should suspect:

an aortic aneurysm

Syncope in the older patient is:

caused by an interruption of blood flow to the brain.

As a person ages, the heart may enlarge as a result of:

chronically increased after load

You are dispatched to a skilled nursing care facility for an 80-year-old female with abnormal behavior. The patient is clearly confused and asks you if you are her husband. You should:

determine the patient's baseline mental status.

Upon arriving at the residence of an elderly female who apparently fainted, you find the patient lying supine on her living room floor. She is not moving and her eyes are closed. A neighbor tells you that she found the patient this way but did not move her. When you gently tap the patient, she does not respond. You should:

direct your partner to manually stabilize her head while you quickly visualize her chest for signs of breathing.

Good general communication techniques with the elderly include:

frequently asking the patient if he or she understands

The purpose of the GEMS diamond is to:

help EMS personnel remember what is different about elderly patients.

In contrast to delirium, dementia:

is usually considered irreversible.

The use of multiple prescription drugs by a single patient, causing the potential for negative effects such as overdosing or drug interaction, is called:

polypharmacy

When performing your secondary assessment on an older patient who has been injured, it is important to:

recall that it will take a less severe mechanism of injury to cause significant injuries.

You are dispatched to a residence for an 80-year-old female who fell. When you arrive, you find the patient conscious, lying in a recumbent position on the floor in her living room. In addition to providing the appropriate treatment, you should ask the patient if:

she became dizzy or fainted before falling.

In contrast to a living will, a "do not resuscitate" (DNR) order becomes valid when:

the patient develops cardiac arrest