A patient who has been taking lamotrigine (Lamictal) for the past ...

[mckennatimberlake]

A patient who has been taking lamotrigine (Lamictal) for the past 2 weeks calls the clinic and reports to the nurse that he or she has developed a rash. What should the nurse tell him or her to do?
 
  A) To continue taking the drug and that the rash will go away
  B) To talk to he or she physician and that he will prescribe a cream to apply to the rash
  C) To decrease the dosage by half for 2 weeks and then take the prescribed dose
  D) To discontinue the drug and return to the clinic immediately

Question 2

How does the nurse describe the cardiac action potential to a new coworker?
 
  A) The cycle of depolarization and repolarization
  B) The time it takes from the firing of the sinuatrial (SA) node to the contraction of the ventricles
  C) The time between the contraction of the atria and the contraction of the ventricles
  D) The cycle of the firing of the atrioventricular (AV) node and the contraction of the myocardium

[fauacakatahaias]

Answer to Question 1

D
Feedback:
The nurse should inform the patient to discontinue the drug and return to the clinic. Rashes associated with the use of lamotrigine can be life-threatening. The patient needs to return to the clinic to be evaluated and will need a change of medication. Discontinuing the medication will cause the rash to clear. The nurse is not licensed to adjust the dosage of a drug for a patient.

Answer to Question 2

A
Feedback:
The action potential of the cardiac muscle cell consists of five phases: Phase 0 occurs when the cell reaches a point of stimulation. This is called depolarization. Phase 2, or the plateau stage, is a process called repolarization. Phase 4 is when spontaneous depolarization begins again. The action potential involves electrolytes and polarization and does not involve timing of the cardiac cycle.

[mckennatimberlake]

Excellent

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TYSM