A nurse is assessing a patient who becomes motionless and seems ...

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A nurse is assessing a patient who becomes motionless and seems to stare at the wall and then experiences about 60 seconds of lip smacking and hand wringing. What should the nurse do?
 
  a. Ask the patient about a history of absence seizures.
  b. Contact the provider to report symptoms of a complex partial seizure.
  c. Notify the provider that the patient has had a grand mal seizure.
  d. Request an order for intravenous diazepam (Valium) to treat status epilepticus.

Question 2

A nurse is discussing partial versus generalized seizures with a group of nursing students. Which statement by a student indicates understanding of the teaching?
 
  a. Febrile seizures are a type of generalized tonic-clonic seizure.
  b. Generalized seizures are characterized by convulsive activity.
  c. Partial seizures do not last as long as generalized seizures.
  d. Patients having partial seizures do not lose consciousness.

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Answer to Question 1

ANS: B
This patient showed signs of a complex partial seizure, characterized by impaired consciousness beginning with a period of motionlessness with a fixed gaze, followed by a period of automatism. The entire episode generally lasts 45 to 90 seconds. Absence seizures are characterized by loss of consciousness for a brief period (about 10 to 30 seconds) and may involve mild, symmetric motor activity or no motor signs. A grand mal seizure is characterized by jaw clenching and rigidity followed by alternating muscle relaxation and contraction and then periods of cyanosis, all with a loss of consciousness. Status epilepticus is a seizure that persists for 30 minutes or longer.

Answer to Question 2

ANS: A
Febrile seizures typically manifest as a tonic-clonic seizure of short duration and are a type of generalized seizure. Generalized seizures may be convulsive or nonconvulsive. Partial seizures may last longer than some types of generalized seizures. Patients with complex partial seizures and secondarily generalized seizures, which are types of partial seizures, may lose consciousness.

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