prep chapter 33
When obtaining a health history from a patient with possible abnormal immune function, what question would be a priority for the nurse to ask?
"Have you ever received a blood transfusion?"
A gardener sustained a deep laceration while working and requires sutures. The date of the client's last tetanus shot was over 10 years ago. Based on this information, the client will receive a tetanus immunization which will allow for the release of what?
Antibodies
A nurse is reviewing the immune system before planning an immunocompromised client's care. How should the nurse characterize the humoral immune response?
Antibodies are made by B lymphocytes in response to a specific antigen.
A client developed an infection while on vacation in Central America and is now taking the antibiotic chloramphenicol. What should the client be monitored for when taking this drug?
Aplastic anemia
A nurse is explaining the process by which the body removes cells from circulation after they have performed their physiologic function. The nurse is describing what process?
Apoptosis
Which of the following cell types are involved in humoral immunity?
B lymphocytes
This type of T lymphocyte is responsible for altering the cell membrane and initiating cellular lysis. Choose the T lymphocyte.
Cytotoxic T cell
Which of the following is a age-related change associated with the immune system?
Decreased antibody production
A client's natural immunity is enhanced by processes that are inherent in the physical and chemical barriers of the body. What is a chemical barrier that enhances natural immunity?
Gastric secretions
Which of the following protective responses begin with the B lymphocytes?
Humoral
A 44-year-old man has come to the clinic with an asthma exacerbation. He tells the nurse that his father and brother also suffer from asthma, as does his 15-year-old son. The nurse explains that this is an allergic response based on a genetic predisposition. The specific allergen initiated by immunological mechanisms is usually mediated by what?
Immunoglobulin E
A client with a history of dermatitis takes corticosteroids on a regular basis. The nurse should assess the client for which of the following complications of therapy?
Immunosuppression
A woman has been diagnosed with breast cancer and is being treated aggressively with a chemotherapeutic regimen. As a result of this regimen, she has an inability to fight infection due to the fact her bone marrow is unable to produce a sufficient amount of what?
Lymphocytes
A patient has enlarged lymph nodes in his neck and a sore throat. This inflammatory response is an example of a cellular immune response whereby:
Lymphocytes migrate to areas of the lymph node
Which type of cell is capable of directly killing invading organisms and producing cytokines?
Natural killer cells
Which type of immunity becomes active as a result of infection by a specific microorganism?
Naturally acquired active immunity
A neonate exhibited some preliminary signs of infection, but the infant's condition resolved spontaneously prior to discharge home from the hospital. This infant's recovery was most likely due to what type of immunity?
Nonspecific immunity
Which condition is associated with impaired immunity relating to the aging client?
Renal function decreases
Nursing students have learned that removal of specific organs may place the patient at risk for impaired immune function. The students are taught that it is important, while taking the patient's health history, to ask the patient if he or she had surgical removal of what organ that may lead to impairment of the immune system?
Spleen
The nurse is assessing a client's risk for impaired immune function. What assessment finding should the nurse identify as a risk factor for decreased immunity?
The client is under significant psychosocial stress.
A client has been diagnosed with AIDS and tuberculosis (TB). A nursing student asks the nurse why the client's skin test for TB is negative if the client's physician has diagnosed TB. The nurse's correct reply is which of the following?
The client's immune system cannot mount a response to the skin test
A nurse is explaining how the humoral and cellular immune responses should be seen as interacting parts of the broader immune system rather than as independent and unrelated processes. What aspect of immune function best demonstrates this?
The interactions that occur between T cells and B cells
A client arrives at the clinic and reports a very sore throat as well as a fever. A rapid strep test returns a positive result and the client is given a prescription for an antibiotic. How did the streptococcal organism gain access to the client to cause this infection?
Through the mucous membranes of the throat
The spleen acts as a filter for old red blood cells, holding a reserve of blood in case of hemorrhagic shock. It is also an area where lymphocytes can concentrate. It can become enlarged (splenomegaly) in certain hematologic disorders and cancers. To assess an enlarged spleen, the nurse would palpate the area of the:
Upper left quadrant of the abdomen.
A 38-year-old client has begun to suffer from rheumatoid arthritis and is being assessed for disorders of the immune system. The client works as an aide at a facility that cares for children infected with AIDS. Which is the most important factor related to the client's assessment?
Use of other drugs
Immunocompetence is the ability of the immune system to cooperatively protect a person from external invaders and the body's own altered cells. Immunocompetence is maintained by white blood cells and:
lymphoid tissue.
An individual's exposure to an airborne pathogen has prompted an immune response that includes both cellular and humoral components. Which of the following activities is most closely associated with the humoral immune response?
B lymphocytes produce antibodies that are specific to the pathogen.
Which condition is associated with impaired immunity relating to the aging client?
Breakdown and thinning of the skin
The nurse is aware that the phagocytic immune response, one of the body's responses to invasion, involves the ability of cells to ingest foreign particles. Which of the following engulfs and destroys invading agents?
Macrophages
A 20-year-old client cut a hand while replacing a window. While reviewing the complete blood count (CBC) with differential, the nurse would expect which cell type to be elevated first in an attempt to prevent infection in the client's hand?
Neutrophils
A client's injury has initiated an immune response that involves inflammation. What are the first cells to arrive at this client's site of inflammation?
Neutrophils
A 16-year-old has been brought to the emergency department by his parents after falling through the glass of a patio door, suffering a laceration. The nurse caring for this client knows that the site of the injury will have an invasion of what?
Phagocytic cells
A 16-year-old has been brought to the emergency department by his parents after falling through the glass of a storm door. The fall resulted in a 6 cm laceration of the right antecubital. The nurse caring for this patient knows that the site of the injury will have an invasion of what?
Phagocytic cells
A client who has developed kidney failure is discussing options with the health care provider for treatment. What does the nurse understand that kidney failure is associated with?
A deficiency in circulating lymphocytes
An emergency department (ED) nurse has provided care for many patients who have primary and secondary diagnoses of immune dysfunction. Which of the following patients likely has the highest risk of a disruption to normal immune functioning?
A man who has recently completed medical treatment for prostate cancer
During a mumps outbreak at a local school, a patient, who is a school teacher, is exposed. She has previously been immunized for mumps. What type of immunity does she possess?
Acquired immunity
An infection control nurse is presenting an in-service reviewing the immune response. The nurse describes the clumping effect that occurs when an antibody acts like a cross-link between two antigens. What process is the nurse explaining?
Agglutination
Immunoglobulins (also known as antibodies) promote the destruction of invading cells in various ways, using different mechanisms. Which mechanism is used by immunoglobulins to destroy pathogenic antigens?
All options are correct
A client undergoing a skin test has been intradermally injected with a disease-specific antigen on the inner forearm. The client becomes anxious because the area begins to swell. What advice should the nurse give to calm the client?
Assure the client that this is a normal reaction.
A client has undergone treatment for urosepsis and received high doses of numerous antibiotics during the course of treatment. When planning the client's subsequent care, the nurse should be aware of what potential effect on the client's immune function?
Bone marrow suppression
A patient is being treated in the intensive care unit for sepsis related to ventilator-associated pneumonia. The patient is on large doses of three different antibiotics. What severe outcome should the nurse monitor for in the lab studies?
Bone marrow suppression
A client's health care provider suspects the client has developed an immune system disorder. What will most likely be the first test ordered?
CBC with differential
A client's current immune response involves the direct destruction of foreign microorganisms. This aspect of the immune response may be performed by what cells?
Cytotoxic T cells
An experiment is designed to determine specific cell types involved in cell-mediated immune response. The experimenter is interested in finding cells that attack the antigen directly by altering the cell membrane and causing cell lysis. Which cells should be isolated?
Cytotoxic T cells
A client is being treated for cancer and the nurse has identified the nursing diagnosis of Risk for Infection Due to Protein Losses. Protein losses inhibit immune response in what way?
Depressing antibody response
When the body is in contact with an allergen, this lymphocyte, located in the respiratory and intestinal mucosa, triggers the release of histamine. Choose that lymphocyte.
Ig E
What immunoglobulin is present in small amounts and is thought to be related to allergic responses?
IgE
A patient is admitted with an infected leg, and the nurse notes an increase in his white blood cell (WBC) count. The nurse is aware that, during the immune response, pathogens are engulfed by WBCs that ingest foreign particles. What is this process known as?
Phagocytosis
The nurse is taking the health history of a newly admitted client. Which condition would place the client at risk for impaired immune function?
Previous organ transplantation
A nurse is admitting a client who exhibits signs and symptoms of a nutritional deficit. Inadequate intake of what nutrient increases a client's susceptibility to infection?
Proteins
The nurse should recognize a client's risk for impaired immune function if the client has undergone surgical removal of which of the following?
Spleen
A nurse is taking the health history of a newly admitted client. Which of the following conditions would NOT place the client at risk for impaired immune function?
Surgical removal of the appendix
A patient has been exposed to a pathogen during an outbreak of a nosocomial (hospital-acquired) infection. The patient's immune system has responded appropriately to the virus, and the response has included the production of memory B cells. These particular B cells will have what effect?
The patient will have a more pronounced immune response to the virus during future exposure.
Which statement accurately reflects current stem cell research?
The stem cell is known as a precursor cell that continually replenishes the body's entire supply of both red and white cells.
During the immune response, cytotoxic cells bind to invading cells, destroy the targeted invader, and release lymphokines to remove the debris. Which type of T-cell lymphocyte is cytotoxic?
effector T cells
A client has had a splenectomy after sustaining serious internal injuries in a motorcycle accident, including a ruptured spleen. Following removal of the spleen, the client will be susceptible to:
infection because the spleen removes bacteria from the blood.
What types of cells are the primary targets of the healthy immune system? Select all that apply.
infectious cells foreign cells cancerous cells
The body has several mechanisms to fight disease, one of which is sending chemical messengers. The messengers released by lymphocytes, monocytes, and macrophages have differing roles in the immune response. Which messenger enables cells to resist viral replication and slow viral replication?
interferons
Proteins formed when cells are exposed to viral or foreign agents that are capable of activating other components of the immune system are referred to as
interferons.
A client has been diagnosed with breast cancer and is being treated aggressively with a chemotherapeutic regimen. As a result of this regimen, the client has an inability to fight infection because bone marrow is unable to produce a sufficient amount of:
lymphocytes.
A client requires ongoing treatment and infection-control precautions because of an inherited deficit in immune function. The nurse should recognize that this client most likely has what type of immune disorder?
An autoimmune disorder
Which is the most important guideline for a nurse caring for immunosuppressed clients?
Follow the guidelines of the agency for controlling infections.
Upon reviewing the results of a complete blood count on a patient who is diagnosed with an acute infection what will the nurse expect to see elevated?
Neutrophil count
A client is taking immunosuppressive medications to prevent the rejection of a transplanted kidney. Which adverse effect(s) should the nurse closely monitor in this client?
respiratory or urinary system infections
A client undergoing a skin test has been intradermally injected with a disease-specific antigen on the inner forearm. The client becomes anxious because the area begins to swell. Which technique may be used to decrease anxiety in this client?
Assure the client that this is a normal reaction
Which immunity type becomes active as a result of infection by a specific microorganism?
naturally acquired active immunity
A nurse is planning the assessment of a client who is exhibiting signs and symptoms of an autoimmune disorder. The nurse should be aware that the incidence and prevalence of autoimmune diseases is known to be higher among what group?
Women
A gardener sustained a deep laceration while working and requires sutures. The patient is asked about the date of his last tetanus shot, which he tells the nurse was more than 10 years ago. Based on this information, the patient will receive a tetanus immunization. The tetanus injection will allow for the release of what?
An antibody
Decades ago, before the role of the tonsils and adenoids was better understood, it was typical after repeated bouts with tonsillitis to have a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy. Today it is understood that the tonsils and adenoids are lymphoid tissues that:
filter bacteria from tissue fluid.
A nursing instructor is giving a lecture on the immune system. The instructor's discussion on phagocytosis will include:
neutrophils and monocytes.