ATI LPN
Brunner & Suddarth's Textbook of Medical-Surgical Nursing 14e (Hinkle 2017)
Chapter 26 : Management of Patients With Dysrhythmias and Conduction Problems Questions
Question 1 of 5
The nurse is caring for a patient who has had an ECG. The nurse notes that leads I, II, and III differ from one another on the cardiac rhythm strip. How should the nurse best respond?
Correct Answer: A
Rationale: Each lead offers a different reference point to view the electrical activity of the heart. The lead displays the configuration of electrical activity of the heart. Differences between leads are not necessarily attributable to equipment malfunction or dysrhythmias.
Question 2 of 5
The nurse is analyzing a rhythm strip. What component of the ECG corresponds to the resting state of the patients heart?
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: The T wave specifically represents ventricular muscle depolarization, also referred to as the resting state. Ventricular muscle depolarization does not result in the P wave, U wave, or QRS complex.
Question 3 of 5
The nursing educator is presenting a case study of an adult patient who has abnormal ventricular depolarization. This pathologic change would be most evident in what component of the ECG?
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: The QRS complex represents the depolarization of the ventricles and, as such, the electrical activity of that ventricle.
Question 4 of 5
An adult patient with third-degree AV block is admitted to the cardiac care unit and placed on continuous cardiac monitoring. What rhythm characteristic will the ECG most likely show?
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: In third-degree AV block, no atrial impulse is conducted through the AV node into the ventricles. As a result, there are impulses stimulating the atria and impulses stimulating the ventricles.
Therefore, there are more P waves than QRS complexes due to the difference in the natural pacemaker (nodes) rates of the heart. The other listed ECG changes are not consistent with this diagnosis.
Question 5 of 5
The nurse is writing a plan of care for a patient with a cardiac dysrhythmia. What would be the most appropriate goal for the patient?
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: For patient safety, the most appropriate goal is to maintain cardiac output to prevent worsening complications as a result of decreased cardiac output. A resting rate of less than 70 bpm is not appropriate for every patient. Chest pain is more closely associated with acute coronary syndrome than with dysrhythmias. Nursing actions cannot normally influence the physical structure of the heart.