Chapter 46. Nursing Care of Patients With Musculoskeletal and Connective Tissue Disorders

The nurse is contributing to the plan of care for a patient who has a right fractured femur. What intervention should the nurse include in the plan of care to prevent fat emboli? a. Decrease dietary consumption of fats. b. Maintain immobilization of the right leg. c. Encourage coughing and deep breathing hourly. d. Perform passive range of motion on the right leg. - ANS: Maintain immobilization of the right leg. Prevention of fat emboli includes keeping the fracture immobilized and hydrating the patient to help dilute and excrete any fat that may escape from the fractured bone. A. Decreasing the consumption of fat will not help prevent fat emboli. C. D. Deep breathing and coughing and performing passive range of motion will not prevent the development of fat emboli. A patient has an open reduction of a radial fracture and is casted. Several hours after the operation, the patient reports a throbbing pain in the arm. What nursing action is essential for the nurse to take? a. Reposition arm. b. Perform neurovascular checks. c. Administer analgesics as ordered. d. Notify the physician immediately. - ANS: Perform neurovascular checks. The nurse should begin with data collection to determine what the next action to take. For this patient the nurse should perform neurovascular checks. A. The arm might need to be positioned however this should not be done until a neurovascular check is completed. C. Administering pain medication might be indicted however should not be done until a pain assessment is completed. D. The nurse needs to determine the patients neurovascular status before notifying the physician.