A patient is prescribed intravenous (IV) adenosine (Adenocard) ...

[Mimi]

A patient is prescribed intravenous (IV) adenosine (Adenocard) for treatment of supraventricular tachycardia. Which safety precaution is most important for the nurse to perform before this drug is administered?
 
  a. Bring the crash cart and defibrillator to the patient's bedside.
  b. Make sure that all four bed side rails are in the upright position.
  c. Place the patient's bed in the lowest position.
  d. Continuously monitor blood pressure.

Question 2

The nurse is assigned to care for a patient with chronic low back pain. What adjustment in pain management does the nurse expect to make?
 
  a. Encouraging the patient to hold off taking a pain drug as long as possible to re-duce the potential for addiction.
  b. Relying on patient report of pain rather than on changes in heart rate, blood pres-sure, and pulse rate.
  c. Keeping the environment as quiet as possible to avoid distracting or irritating the patient.
  d. Using nondrug measures in place of analgesics to relieve the patient's pain.

[johnharpe]

Answer to Question 1

A
Adenosine slows electrical impulse conduction through the AV node. It is always given rapidly by IV push (1 to 2 seconds). After the drug is given, there is usually a very brief period of asys-tole (when the heart stops beating) before the heart resumes a normal rhythm. Because of this, emergency equipment must be available at the patient's bedside before the drug is given.

Answer to Question 2

B
Adaptation to the presence of chronic pain is physiologic, not psychological. Thus the usual al-terations in physiologic parameters when acute pain is present do not accompany chronic pain.

[Mimi]

Excellent

[FergA]

TYSM