NCLEX-PN
NCLEX Questions Respiratory Questions
Extract:
Question 1 of 5
An adult has a chest drainage system. Several hours after the chest tube was inserted, the nurse observes that there is no bubbling in the water seal chamber. What is the most likely reason for the absence of bubbling?
Correct Answer: A
Rationale: No bubbling in the water seal chamber typically indicates lung reexpansion, as air is no longer leaking from the lung into the pleural space.
Question 2 of 5
The client diagnosed with chronic sinusitis who has undergone a Caldwell-Luc procedure is complaining of pain. Which intervention should the nurse implement first?
Correct Answer: D
Rationale: Pain assessment (
D) is the first step to determine severity and guide treatment. Narcotics (
A), oral hygiene (
B), and positioning (
C) follow based on assessment.
Question 3 of 5
Which diagnostic test should the nurse anticipate the health-care provider ordering to rule out the diagnosis of asthma in clients diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)?
Correct Answer: D
Rationale: A bronchodilator reversibility test differentiates asthma from COPD by assessing whether airway obstruction is reversible. In asthma, lung function (e.g., FEV1) improves significantly post-bronchodilator, while COPD shows minimal improvement. Bronchoscopy (
A) is invasive and not specific for this differentiation. Immunoglobulin E (
B) is relevant for allergies, not distinguishing asthma from COPD. Arterial blood gases (
C) assess oxygenation but do not differentiate these conditions.
Question 4 of 5
A patient has a positive PPD skin test that shows an 8 mm induration. As the nurse you know that:
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: A positive PPD result does NOT necessarily mean the patient has an active infection of TB. The patient will need a chest x-ray and sputum culture to determine if mycobacterium tuberculosis is present and then treatment will be based on those results. The IGRA test does NOT differentiate between LTBI or an active TB infection. Patients are placed in airborne precautions (NOT droplet) if they have ACTIVE TB.
Question 5 of 5
A patient is presenting with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The patient has a chronic productive cough with dyspnea on excretion. Arterial blood gases show a low oxygen level and high carbon dioxide level in the blood. On assessment, the patient has cyanosis in the lips and edema in the abdomen and legs. Based on your nursing knowledge and the patient's symptoms, you suspect the patient suffers from what type of COPD?
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: Chronic bronchitis , a type of COPD, is characterized by chronic productive cough, hypoxemia, hypercapnia, cyanosis, and edema from right heart failure. Emphysema typically shows barrel chest, pneumonia is an infection, and pneumothorax involves lung collapse.