A patient with a long history of pain rarely appears to be in ...

[KimWrice]

A patient with a long history of pain rarely appears to be in pain and often forgoes the use of pain medication. What does the nurse realize about this patient?
 
  1. The patient has a high pain tolerance.
  2. The patient has a low pain tolerance.
  3. The patient is addicted to pain medication.
  4. The patient does not really have pain.

Question 2

A patient with a history of chronic pain tells the nurse, I do a variety of things to make my body produce its own pain reliever. What should the nurse realize this patient is describing?
 
  1. a theory of denial
  2. a belief in alternative methods
  3. a reason to reduce the amount of pain medication prescribed
  4. the body's ability to make endorphins

[pami445]

Answer to Question 1

Correct Answer: 1
Pain tolerance describes the amount of pain a person can tolerate before outwardly responding to it. A patient with a high tolerance to pain would rarely report pain or need analgesic management. With a low tolerance, the patient would be verbalizing pain and requesting medication. If addicted, the patient would eventually need more medication, not less, to manage the pain. There no evidence that the patient is not in pain.

Answer to Question 2

Correct Answer: 4
There is a pain inhibitory center within the dorsal horns of the spinal cord. The exact nature of this inhibitory mechanism is unknown. However, the most clearly defined chemical inhibitory mechanism is fueled by endorphins (endogenous morphines), which are naturally occurring opioid peptides that are present in neurons in the brain, spinal cord, and gastrointestinal tract. Endorphins work by binding with opiate receptors on the neurons to inhibit pain impulse transmission. The patient is not denying the pain. Alternative methods have not been employed. There was no discussion of pain medication amounts.

[KimWrice]

Excellent

[Bigfoot1984]

TYSM