Chapter 9: Pain Management

A clinic nurse assesses a client with diabetes who reports taking naproxen (Aleve) and the herb bilberry for osteoarthritis. To assess for an adverse reaction between naproxen and bilberry, the nurse asks the client

"Do you bleed easily?"

The nurse is obtaining data regarding medications the client is taking on a regular basis. The client states he is taking duloxetine, an antidepressant for the treatment of neuropathic pain. What type of therapy does the nurse understand the client is receiving?

Adjuvant drug therapy

The nurse is visiting a client at home with intractable cancer pain. The client has a transdermal fentanyl patch on her right chest area. It is most important for the nurse to

Remove the heating pad present on the chest area.

Which of the following is the most important potential nursing diagnosis for the client receiving opiate therapy?

Risk for impaired gas exchange

Which condition is a heightened response that occurs after exposure to a noxious stimulus?

Sensitization

Which of the following is a true statement with regards to the preventative approach to the use of analgesics?

Smaller doses of medication are needed.

A client is receiving morphine sulfate intravenously (IV) every 4 hours as needed for the relief of pain related to a surgical procedure the client had 3 days previously. The physician is discontinuing the IV and will be starting the client on oral pain medication. What would provide the client with optimal pain relief when discontinuing the IV dose?

Administer an equianalgesic dose.

The client reports chest pain. The nurse uses which of the following questions to assess the pain further. Select all answers that apply.

"How long have you experienced this pain?" "Please point to where you are experiencing pain." "Rate the pain on a scale of 0 to 10, with 10 being the worst possible pain." "What aggravates your chest pain?"

How should the administration of analgesics be scheduled to provide a uniform level of pain relief to a client?

Administering the analgesics every three hours

A client has been prescribed a fentanyl patch for pain control. The nurse understands that this patch should be replaced every

48-72 hours.

The nurse is assessing a client who has been taking up to 4 grams of acetaminophen every day for undiagnosed pain. What reaction due to ingestion of acetaminophen will the nurse assess for?

Abrupt onset of rash and pruritus

A client with appendicitis has had an appendectomy. After surgery, what type of pain does the nurse anticipate the client will have?

Acute pain

A client is being treated in a substance abuse unit of a local hospital. The nurse understands that when this client has compulsive behavior to use a drug for its psychic effect, the client needs to be monitored for which effect?

Addiction

Which of the following should the nurse recommend to a client with a bruised ankle to initially relieve pain associated with the injury and reduce localized swelling?

Applications of heat and cold

A home health nurse is visiting a client who has been taking the same dose of acetaminophen/hydrocodone for 2 months. To monitor for the presence of expected side effects of this medication, what should the nurse include in the assessment of the client?

Ask about the client's bowel pattern.

A client with a terminal illness grimaces and begins to cry when being turned and repositioned in bed. Which action will the nurse take at this time?

Ask the client to rate the pain.

The client takes naproxen for arthritic pain and is now prescribed warfarin for persistent atrial fibrillation. Due to the interactions of the medications, what is the nurse's best response?

Assess the client's stool for color

When administering a fentanyl patch, the last dose of sustained-release morphine should be administered at what point?

At the same time the first patch is applied

When a nurse asks a patient to describe the quality of the pain, what type of descriptive term does the nurse expect the patient to use?

Burning

The client is taking oxycodone (Oxycontin) for chronic back pain and reports decreased pain relief when he began taking a herb to improve his physical stamina. The nurse asks if the herb is

ginseng

Which of the following nursing interventions contributes to achieving a client's goal for pain relief?

Collaborate with the client about his or her goal for a level of pain relief.

When using transdermal Fentanyl, the nurse and patient should be aware of which sign or symptom of Fentanyl overdose?

Confusion

The client is scheduled for surgery. The nurse is reviewing with the client about postoperative pain management. The client states her goal after receiving treatment is "0." The first action of the nurse is to

Educate the client that this goal may not be achievable.

Which substance reduces the transmission of pain?

Endorphins

A client being treated for rheumatoid arthritis has been prescribed a glucocorticosteroid. How should the nurse best ensure this client's safety during treatment?

Ensure the client knows to taper down the dose if it is discontinued by the care provider.

The nurse is caring for a client with traumatic injuries. Which action will the nurse perform to conduct a comprehensive pain assessment for this client?

Evaluate the effect of pain on ability to perform recovery activities.

The advance nurse practitioner, who is treating a client diagnosed with neuropathic pain, decides to start adjuvant analgesic agent therapy. Which medication is appropriate for the nurse practitioner to prescribe?

Gabapentin

A nurse is caring for a client with pain. What should the nurse monitor for when administering intravenous acetaminophen?

Hepatotoxicity

A patient comes into the clinic frequently with complaints of pain. What would the nurse recognize as chronic benign pain in a patient?

Low back pain

The nurse informs the patient that a preventive approach for pain relief will be used, involving nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. What will this mean for the patient?

The pain medication will be administered before the pain is experienced.

Which of the following is a true statement with regards to the nursing process of pain control?

The use of physiologic signs to indicate pain is unreliable.

A client is prescribed methadone 10 mg three times a day for neuralgia following chemotherapy treatment. The client reports that he is experiencing constipation and asks the nurse for information about preventing constipation. The nurse recommends

increasing the amount of bran and fresh fruits and vegetables

A client is on a second round of radiation therapy for an inoperable tumor, and asks the nurse for medication to help with pain. The nurse suspects that the client's pain is the result of nerve damage from the radiation. Which type of pain is the client likely experiencing?

neuropathic pain

When caring for a patient who is deaf, which of the following should be used to elicit information regarding the patient's level of pain?

An outside interpreter should be used.

In which case it is most likely that pain management may not be readily forthcoming to an adult client who is in pain?

When the client's expressions of pain are incongruent with the nurse's expectations

The nurse understands the definition of pain as "an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage, or described in terms of such damage." Which of the following comments by a client confirm the client's understanding of the fundamental concepts of pain? Select all that apply.

"I am tired of living with this nagging pain; I'm not sure how much longer I can go on." "I would love to go to church, but my back pain is too uncomfortable to make it through the service." "I used to walk every day for exercise; pain in my knee made me stop walking."

A teenage client is undergoing a dressing change to burns on the thigh. The client refuses pain medication and states, "I do not hurt, and I don't need it." He is withdrawn, grimaces, and turns away during the dressing change. He was last medicated 8 hours ago. What is the best statement by the nurse?

"I saw you grimacing during the dressing change. Please explain the reason you refused the pain medication."

The nurse applies a transdermal patch of fentanyl for a client with pain due to cancer of the pancreas. The client puts the call light on 1 hour later and tells the nurse that it has not helped. What is the best response by the nurse?

"It will take approximately 12 to 18 hours for the medication to begin to work, so I will give you something else now to relieve the pain."

A client informs the nurse of having taken ibuprofen every 6 hours for 3 weeks to help alleviate the pain of arthritis. The client has a history of a gastric ulcer and is taking a proton pump inhibitor for the treatment of this disorder. What should the nurse instruct the client about the use of the ibuprofen?

"It would be best to contact the health care provider before taking any over-the-counter medications."

A client is receiving morphine through a patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) system following surgery. The nurse states to the client

"Only you are to push the button for medication."

A client is prescribed morphine for a possible ankle fracture. When the nurse brings in a second dose of the medication, the client states, "This medicine made me sick." The nurse replies

"What do you mean by the word sick?"

A client with end-stage dementia is admitted to the orthopedic unit after undergoing internal fixation of the right hip. How should the nurse manage the client's postoperative pain?

Administer analgesics around the clock.

The nurse understands that which statement is true about tolerance and addiction?

Although clients may need increasing levels of opioids, they are not addicted.

Prostaglandins are chemical substances with what property?

Increase the sensitivity of pain receptors

A client is recovering from abdominal surgery and sleeping. The client had received an opioid medication 3 hours ago. The client's son requests pain medication for the client, stating "I do not want her to wake up in pain." The first nursing action is

Instruct the son about lack of client consent.

When drafting a nursing care plan for a patient in pain, it is important for the nurse to determine if the pain is acute or chronic. Choose the best example of chronic pain.

Intervertebral disk herniation

A client, who had an above the knee amputation of the left leg related to peripheral vascular disease from uncontrolled diabetes, complains of pain in the left lower extremity. What type of pain is the client experiencing?

Neuropathic pain

A client is reporting her pain as "8" on a 0-to-10 pain intensity scale. Then, the client states the pain is "3." Before the nurse leaves the room, the client states her pain is "6." The best action of the nurse is to

Obtain a pain scale with faces for the client to measure her pain.

The nurse is administering an analgesic to an older adult patient. Why is it important for the nurse to assess the patient carefully?

Older people are more sensitive to drugs.

The nurse plans nonpharmacologic interventions for a client who is approaching discharge after a left knee arthroplasty to address the client's pain. For each intervention, click to specify if the therapy indicates a physical modality, cognitive and behavioral method, or movement therapy for the treatment of pain.

Physical- application of heat or cold, aquatic therapy, proper body alignment Movement- yoga, Thai Chi Cognitive- relaxation breathing, distraction, imagery

The nurse has given an older adult an oral opioid for postoperative pain. What should the nurse do first to make the pain medication more effective?

Position the client for comfort.

Which condition, approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, is the only use for the lidocaine 5% patch?

Postherpetic neuralgia

A nurse documents the presence of chronic pain on an electronic health record. Choose a description that could be used. The pain can be:

Prolonged in duration.

Which is a gastrointestinal route for administration of analgesics?

Rectal

An elderly client has a fractured hip and is in Buck's traction. The client is disoriented and cannot express herself. At 0730 the client was calm. Now, at 0930, the client is restless and agitated. The nurse reviews the medication administration record. The last dose of opioid was at 0330. The nurse assesses the client's agitation may be from

Recurring pain

An adult with severe cognitive impairment has had a surgical procedure, and the nurse is having a difficult time assessing the level of pain the client is having postoperatively. What method can the nurse use to obtain data about the client's pain?

Use behavioral comparison of the client's current and previous behavior patterns.

A client who speaks Korean only had emergency surgery. No pain scale was established prior to surgery. To assess the client's pain postoperatively, the nurse

Uses a language translation phone line

A client is admitted with generalized abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and hypotension. The client has not passed stool in over 1 week and has been in pain for the past 4 days. Which type of pain would you expect the client to be experiencing?

Visceral

A client reports having joint pain that has gotten worse over the last year despite gradually increasing doses of an OTC pain reliever. Which type of pain will the nurse document as the chief complaint?

chronic pain

A 64-year-old client is experiencing joint pain on a regular basis and asks the nurse what the options are beyond heat and the yoga exercises the client has been doing. What does the nurse describe as the cornerstone treatment modality for pain?

drug therapy

The client experienced abdominal surgery the previous day and has just received an opioid medication for report of pain. The client is sitting in a chair next to the bed. An additional activity that the nurse uses to relieve pain is

encourage the client to watch television

The nurse is assessing a client with an epidural catheter. This client is also receiving anti-thrombotic therapy. The nurse notes that the client is experiencing sensory and motor dysfunction of the lower limbs. The nurse should suspect:

epidural hematoma

A client has been given a patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) device to control postoperative pain. The client expresses concern about administering too much of the analgesic and accidentally overdosing. What topic should the nurse teach the client about?

the limits on dose and frequency that are programmed into the PCA

A client who has undergone extensive fracture repair continues to request opioid pain medication with increasing frequency. The initial surgeries occurred more than 2 months ago, and the nurse is concerned about the repeated requests. What does the nurse suspect to be the cause of the client's frequent appeals for pain medication?

tolerance

A client has been taking opioid analgesics for more than 2 weeks to control post-surgical pain. Although pleased with the client's progress, the surgeon decides to change the analgesic to a non-opioid drug. The surgeon prescribes a gradually lower opioid dose and increasingly larger non-opioid doses. The surgeon is changing medications in this manner to avoid:

withdrawal symptoms.