ch.42
Which property is related to the ability of the heart cells to transmit an action potential of electrical impulse?
Conductivity
As part of their orientation to a cardiac care unit, a group of recent nursing graduates is receiving a refresher in cardiac physiology from the unit educator. Which teaching point best captures a component of cardiac function?
"The diastolic phase is characterized by relaxation of ventricles and their filling with blood.
A client has been diagnosed with a problem associated with the heart's right atrium. Which statement indicates that the client understands the diagnosis?
"The top chamber, responsible for receiving blood from my body's veins, is the problem."
In which situation would blood be most likely to be rapidly relocated from central circulation to the lower extremities?
A client is helped out of bed and stands up
When explaining the difference between arteries and veins, the nurse would include which statement?
Arteries have smooth muscles that can change blood pressure by means of vasoconstriction or vasodilatation.
A client is diagnosed with an atrial septal defect (ASD) that has caused a hole between the two upper chambers of the heart. What is the direct result of such a defect?
Deoxygenated and oxygenated blood will mix
The nurse assists and educates clients about blood pressure regulation. Which information is important to include in the review with clients about blood pressure?
Force exerted by the blood against the walls of the blood vessels
Fluid moves into the arterial end of a capillary due to:
Hydrostatic pressure
The principles of Starling's law attempt to explain the cause of which cardiovascular dysfunction?
Ineffective contractibility of the heart's left ventricle
An electrocardiogram (ECG) is prescribed for a client experiencing signs and symptoms associated with a cardiac dysfunction. Which function of the heart will this diagnostic tool help evaluate? You Selected:
Ineffective pumping
Which client diagnosis is related to left-sided heart failure?
Pulmonary edema
Which is released initially when blood flow to the kidneys is decreased?
Renin
The pathway for blood flow through the heart is:
Right atria to right ventricle to pulmonary artery through lungs to pulmonary veins to left atria and then to left ventricle.
What structure makes it possible for the heart to be harvested for transplantation when donated by a client who is declared "brain dead"?
SA node
Which would the nurse explain is the pacemaker of the heart?
SA node
A client who has been diagnosed with blood pressure problems is eager to know more about the condition. What should the nurse explain is one of the internal processes that attempt to maintain blood pressure within normal limits?
Special sensory receptors in blood vessel walls called baroreceptors are stimulated.
It is determined that a client's cardiac rhythm is being originated in the sinoatrial (SA) node. What mechanism is responsible for the triggering of this node?
Specialized cells within the node itself
What sequence describes the flow of electrical impulses in the heart?
The Sinoatrial node, the atrioventricular node, bundle of His, right and left bundle branches, and the Purkinje fibers.
A client has severe aortic valve disease. When educating the client about anatomy, what would the nurse include?
The aortic valve separates the left ventricle and aorta.
The nurse is reviewing with the client the three major layers of the heart wall and how they relate to the pericardium. What is the best description by the nurse to the client about the myocardium layer of the heart?
Thick, strong muscles making up the middle layer
After teaching a group of students about circulation, the instructor determines that the teaching was successful when the students identify it as:
a high to low pressure system.
A nurse is explaining to a client the physiology of the heart with reference to the cardiac valves. Which statement by the client about the function of the cardiac valves demonstrates the correct understanding of the nurse's explanation?
allows blood flow in one direction only
The nurse is reviewing a patient's electrocardiogram and notes that the P waves are saw-toothed in shape and there are three P waves for every QRS complex. The nurse would interpret this as
atrial fiber
The nurse is reviewing a patient's electrocardiogram and notes that the P waves are saw-toothed in shape and there are three P waves for every QRS complex. The nurse would interpret this as suggesting:
atrial flutter
When considering vital signs, which assessment is focused on the functioning of the body's resistance system
blood pressure
When explaining blood supply to the heart muscle, the nurse explains that the left circumflex artery supplies the:
left ventricle.
A backflow of blood is noted in the left ventricle from the left atrium. The patient is suffering from a defect in which valve
mitral valve
If the production of actin is disrupted, what component of the human body will be affected?
muscles
nurse is measuring the BP of a client. The client asks what the BP measures. What is the best response by the nurse about the measurement of BP?
pressure of blood within the arteries
Which area of the heart is supplied by the right coronary artery?
right side of the heart
A group of nursing students is preparing a poster presentation describing the anatomy and function of the heart. In their diagram of the organ, they label the structure that separates the left and right sides of the heart as the:
septum
When describing Starling's law of the heart, the instructor compares this to:
stretching of a rubber band
The nursing instructor is explaining cardiac function to the senior nursing class. The instructor explains that blood is ejected into the circulation as the chambers of the heart become smaller. The instructor categorizes this action of the heart as what?
systole
Contraction of the right atrium sends blood through the:
tricuspid valve.
Blood returning to the heart arrives at the right atrium by way of what vessel(s)?
vena cava
