Prep U Neuro Ch. 66

A patient is admitted to the hospital with an ICP reading of 20 mm Hg and a mean arterial pressure of 90 mm Hg. What would the nurse calculate the CPP to be?

70 mm Hg

A nurse is working in the neurologic intensive care unit and admits from the emergency department a patient with a severe head injury. Upon entering the room, the nurse observes that the patient is positioned like part A of the accompanying image. Which posturing is the patient exhibiting?

Decorticate

When educating a patient about the use of antiseizure medication, what should the nurse inform the patient is a result of long-term use of the medication in women?

Osteoporosis

After a transsphenoidal adenohypophysectomy, a client is likely to undergo hormone replacement therapy. A transsphenoidal adenohypophysectomy is performed to treat which type of cancer?

Pituitary carcinoma

A client with neurologic infection develops cerebral edema from syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone (SIADH). Which is an important nursing action for this client?

Restricting fluid intake and hydration

Which method is used to help reduce intracranial pressure?

Using a cervical collar

A nurse is caring for a client with a diagnosis of trigeminal neuralgia. Which activity is altered as a result of this diagnosis?

chewing

Which of the following is an early sign of increasing intracranial pressure (ICP)?

headache

To meet the sensory needs of a client with viral meningitis, the nurse should:

minimize exposure to bright lights and noise

A client is being treated for increased intracranial pressure (ICP). The nurse should ensure that the client does not develop hypothermia because:

shivering in hypothermia can increase ICP.

A nurse is assessing a client who has been in a motor vehicle collision. The client directly and accurately answers questions. The nurse notes a contusion to the client's forehead; the client reports a headache. Assessing the client's pupils, what reaction would confirm increasing intracranial pressure?

unequal response

A nurse assesses the patient's LOC using the Glasgow Coma Scale. What score indicates severe impairment of neurologic function?

3

A client with a brain tumor is complaining of a headache upon awakening. Which nursing action would the nurse take first?

Elevate the head of the bed

Which activity should be avoided in clients with increased intracranial pressure (ICP)?

Enemas

A nurse is monitoring a client for increasing intracranial pressure (ICP). Early signs of increased ICP include:

diminished responsiveness

A nurse is working on a neurological unit with a nursing student who asks the difference between primary and secondary headaches. The nurse's correct response will include which of the following statements?

"A secondary headache is associated with an organic cause, such as a brain tumor."

A client is transferred to the intensive care unit after evacuation of a subdural hematoma. Which nursing intervention reduces the client's risk of increased intracranial pressure (ICP)?

Administering a stool softener as ordered

The school nurse notes a 6-year-old running across the playground with friends. The child stops in mid-stride, freezing for a few seconds. Then the child resumes his progress across the playground. The school nurse suspects what in this child?

An absence siezure

The nurse is educating a group of people newly diagnosed with migraine headaches. What information should the nurse include in the educational session? Select all that apply.

Keep a food diary Maintain a headache diary

A nurse is preparing to administer an antiseizure medication to a client. Which of the following is an appropriate antiseizure medication?

Lamictal

Which phase of a migraine headache usually lasts less than an hour?

Aura

A client undergoes a craniotomy with supratentorial surgery to remove a brain tumor. On the first postoperative day, the nurse notes the absence of a bone flap at the operative site. How should the nurse position the client's head?

Elevated 30 degrees

The nurse is caring for a client with an inoperable brain tumor. What teaching is important for the nurse to do with these clients?

Explaining hospice care and services

The nurse is caring for a patient postoperatively after intracranial surgery for the treatment of a subdural hematoma. The nurse observes an increase in the patient's blood pressure from the baseline and a decrease in the heart rate from 86 to 54. The patient has crackles in the bases of the lungs. What does the nurse suspect is occurring?

Increased ICP

The nurse is called to attend to a patient having a seizure in the waiting area. What nursing care is provided for a patient who is experiencing a convulsive seizure? Select all that apply.

Loosening constrictive clothing Positioning the patient on his or her side with head flexed forward Providing for privacy

A nurse is providing education about migraine headaches to a community group. The cause of migraines has not been clearly demonstrated, but is related to vascular disturbances. A member of the group asks about familial tendencies. The nurse's correct reply will be which of the following?

"There is a strong familial tendency."

A client weighing 132 lb is brought to the emergency department in status epilepticus. The physician asks the nurse to prepare diazepam 0.25 mg/kg. How many milligrams will be given to this client?

15

A client is admitted to an acute care facility after an episode of status epilepticus. After the client is stabilized, which factor is most beneficial in determining the potential cause of the episode?

Compliance with the prescribed medication regimen

A client experiences loss of consciousness, tongue biting, and incontinence, along with tonic and clonic phases of seizure activity. The nurse should document this episode as which type of seizure?

Generalized

The nurse is educating a patient with a seizure disorder. What nutritional approach for seizure management would be beneficial for this patient?

High in protein and low in carbohydrate

A client is exhibiting signs of increasing intracranial pressure (ICP). Which intravenous solution (IV) would the nurse anticipate hanging?

Mannitol

The initial sign of increasing intracranial pressure (ICP) includes

decreased LOC

A 30-year-old was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Which statement by the client would indicate a need for more teaching from the nurse?

"My children are at greater risk to develop this disease."

A client is receiving intravenous (IV) dobutamine (Dobutrex) to help provide adequate perfusion to the brain. The order is for dobutamine 50 mg in 500 mL D5W at 2 mcg/kg/min. The client weighs 58 kg. At how many mL per hour will the nurse administer this medication? Enter the correct number ONLY.

70

A client is receiving intravenous (IV) mannitol to prevent increased intracranial pressure. The order is for mannitol 1.5 grams per kg of body weight IV now. The client weighs 143 lbs (65 kg). How many grams will the nurse administer to the client? Enter the correct number ONLY.

97.5

Which positions is used to help reduce intracranial pressure (ICP)?

Avoiding flexion of the neck with use of a cervical collar

A client with a traumatic brain injury has already displayed early signs of increasing intracranial pressure (ICP). Which of the following would be considered late signs of increasing ICP?

Decerebrate posturing and loss of corneal reflex

A nurse is assessing a patient's urinary output as an indicator of diabetes insipidus. The nurse knows that an hourly output of what volume over 2 hours may be a positive indicator?

More than 200 ml/h

A client is receiving hypothermic treatment for uncontrolled fever related to increased intracranial pressure (ICP). Which assessment finding requires immediate intervention?

Shivering

Which interventions are appropriate for a client with increased intracranial pressure (ICP)? Select all that apply.

Administering prescribed antipyretics Maintaining aseptic technique with an intraventricular catheter Frequent oral care

An unresponsive patient is brought to the ED by a family member. The family states, "We don't know what happened." Which of the following is the priority nursing intervention?

Assess for a patent airway

A nurse is working in the neurologic intensive care unit and admits from the emergency department a patient with an inoperable brain tumor. Upon entering the room, the nurse observes that the patient is positioned like the person in part B of the accompanying image. Which posturing is the patient exhibiting?

Decerebrate

A nurse is continually monitoring a client with a traumatic brain injury for signs of increasing intracranial pressure. The cranial vault contains brain tissue, blood, and cerebrospinal fluid; an increase in any of the components causes a change in the volume of the others. This hypothesis is called which of the following?

Monro-Kellie

A patient 3 days postoperative from a craniotomy informs the nurse, "I feel something trickling down the back of my throat and I taste something salty." What priority intervention does the nurse initiate?

Notify the physician of a possible cerebrospinal fluid leak.

A nurse working on a medical-surgical floor walks into a patient's room to find the patient with an altered level of consciousness (LOC). Which of the following nursing diagnoses would be the first priority for the plan of care?

Ineffective airway clearance related to altered LOC

When the nurse observes that the client has extension and external rotation of the arms and wrists and extension, plantar flexion, and internal rotation of the feet, she records the client's posture as

decerebrate

An osmotic diuretic such as mannitol is given to the client with increased intracranial pressure (ICP) to

dehydrate the brain and reduce cerebral edema