OB Questions
The nurse is caring for a woman who gave birth to a daughter yesterdaybut greatly desired a son.
Today she seems withdrawn, staying in bed and staring at a wall. What is the most appropriate
intervention?
A. Monitor this normal response after delivery.
B. Refer the client for a psychiatric consultation.
C. Tell the client she should be thankful her baby is healthy.
D. Encourage the mother to verbalize her disappointment. - ANSWER D. Encourage the mother to
verbalize her disappointment.
A client is to be discharged 12 hours after deliver. The nurse should delay the discharge and notify
the physician if which of the following is observed?
A. Moderate lochia rubra.
B. Fundus firm at umbilicus.
C. Pulse 62 beats per minute.
D. Three voidings totaling 240cc in 12 hours. - ANSWER D. Three voidings totaling 240cc in 12 hours.
The primary difference between the labor of a nullipara and that of a multipara is the:
A. amount of cervical dilation.
B. level of pain experienced.
C. sequence of labor mechanisms.
D. total duration of labor. - ANSWER D. total duration of labor.
Why is continuous electronic fetal monitoring usually used when oxytocin is administered?
A. Fetal chemoreceptors are stimulated.
B. Maternal fluid volume deficit may occur.
C. The mother may become hypotensive.
,D. Uteroplacental exchange may be compromised. - ANSWER D. Uteroplacental exchange may be
compromised.
When auscultating the fetal heart rate, the nurse notes a rate of 86 and a soft sound. The
appropriate nursing action is to:
A. chart this expectes fetal heart rate.
B. notify the physician of the abnormal fetal heart rate.
C. determine the woman's current labor status.
D. assess the mother's radial pulse. - ANSWER D. assess the mother's radial pulse.
You are assessing a client's fundus and find it firm, 2 cm above the umbilicus, and displaced to the
right. What is the most appropriate intervention?
A. Massage the fundus until firm.
B. Have client void and reassess the fundus.
C. Notify the physician.
D. Start a pad count. - ANSWER B. Have client void and reassess the fundus.
The nurse notes a pattern of late decelerations on the fetal monitor. The most appropriate first
action is to:
A. give the woman oxygen by facemask.
B. continue observation of this reassuring pattern.
C. notify the physician or nurse-midwife.
D. place the woman in a Trendelenburg position. - ANSWER A. give the woman oxygen by facemask.
The nurse-midwife is concerned that a woman's uterine activity is too intense and that her obesity is
preventing accurate assessment of the actual intrauterine pressure. On the basis of this information,
the nurse should obtain:
A. a tocotransducer.
B. an intrauterine pressure catheter.
,C. a scalp electrode.
D. a Doppler transducer. - ANSWER B. an intrauterine pressure catheter.
After a forceps-assisted birth, the mother is observed to have continuous bright red lochia but a firm
fundus. What other data would indicate the presence of a potential vaginal wall hematoma?
A. Mild, intermittent perineal pain
B. Edema and discoloration of the labia and perineum
C. Lack of an episiotomy
D. Lack of pain in the perineal area - ANSWER B. Edema and discoloration of the labia and perineum
To provide safe care for the woman, the nurse understands that which condition is a
contraindication for an amniotomy?
A. 2 station
B. Dilation less than 3 cm
C. Right occiput posterior position
D. Cephalic presentation - ANSWER A. 2 station
What is the primary nursing measure to promote fetal descent?
A. Remind the woman to empty her bladder every 1 to 2 hours.
B. Assist fetal head rotation while doing a vaginal examination.
C. Have a woman push atleast three times with each contraction.
D. Promote intake of glucose-containing fluids during labor. - ANSWER A. Remind the woman to
empty her bladder every 1 to 2 hours.
This is the first postoperative day for a client who delivered by cesarean. The client asks the nurse
why she has to get up and walk when it hurts her incision so much. The nurse responds that:
A. Walking decreases the risk of blood clots after surgery.
B. Walking encourages deep breaths to blow off the anesthetic from surgery.
, C. Early ambulation is important to stimulate milk production.
D. Walking will decrease the occurrence of afterpains. - ANSWER A. Walking decreases the risk of
blood clots after surgery.
A woman at 40 weeks of gestation should be instructed to go to a hospital or birth center for
evaluation when she experiences:
A. irregular contractions for 1 hour.
B. a trickle of fluid from the vagina.
C. thick pink or dark red vaginal mucus.
D. fetal movement. - ANSWER B. a trickle of fluid from the vagina.
If a woman's fundus is soft 30 minutes after birth, the nurse's first response should be to:
A. massage the fundus
B. take the blood pressure
C. notify the physician or nurse-midwife
D. place the woman in Trendelenburg position - ANSWER A. massage the fundus
The maternity nurse understands that as the uterus contracts during labor, maternal-fetal exchange
of oxygen and waste products:
A. continues except when placental functions are reduced.
B. diminishes as the spiral arteries are compressed.
C. is not significantly affected.
D. increases as blood pressure decreases. - ANSWER B. diminishes as the spiral arteries are
compressed.
Parents of a newborn with a forceps-assisted vaginal birth ask about small reddened areas on the
infant's cheeks. The nurse should tell them that the areas:
A. Are temporary and will disappear.
B. Are typical of all vaginal births.
The nurse is caring for a woman who gave birth to a daughter yesterdaybut greatly desired a son.
Today she seems withdrawn, staying in bed and staring at a wall. What is the most appropriate
intervention?
A. Monitor this normal response after delivery.
B. Refer the client for a psychiatric consultation.
C. Tell the client she should be thankful her baby is healthy.
D. Encourage the mother to verbalize her disappointment. - ANSWER D. Encourage the mother to
verbalize her disappointment.
A client is to be discharged 12 hours after deliver. The nurse should delay the discharge and notify
the physician if which of the following is observed?
A. Moderate lochia rubra.
B. Fundus firm at umbilicus.
C. Pulse 62 beats per minute.
D. Three voidings totaling 240cc in 12 hours. - ANSWER D. Three voidings totaling 240cc in 12 hours.
The primary difference between the labor of a nullipara and that of a multipara is the:
A. amount of cervical dilation.
B. level of pain experienced.
C. sequence of labor mechanisms.
D. total duration of labor. - ANSWER D. total duration of labor.
Why is continuous electronic fetal monitoring usually used when oxytocin is administered?
A. Fetal chemoreceptors are stimulated.
B. Maternal fluid volume deficit may occur.
C. The mother may become hypotensive.
,D. Uteroplacental exchange may be compromised. - ANSWER D. Uteroplacental exchange may be
compromised.
When auscultating the fetal heart rate, the nurse notes a rate of 86 and a soft sound. The
appropriate nursing action is to:
A. chart this expectes fetal heart rate.
B. notify the physician of the abnormal fetal heart rate.
C. determine the woman's current labor status.
D. assess the mother's radial pulse. - ANSWER D. assess the mother's radial pulse.
You are assessing a client's fundus and find it firm, 2 cm above the umbilicus, and displaced to the
right. What is the most appropriate intervention?
A. Massage the fundus until firm.
B. Have client void and reassess the fundus.
C. Notify the physician.
D. Start a pad count. - ANSWER B. Have client void and reassess the fundus.
The nurse notes a pattern of late decelerations on the fetal monitor. The most appropriate first
action is to:
A. give the woman oxygen by facemask.
B. continue observation of this reassuring pattern.
C. notify the physician or nurse-midwife.
D. place the woman in a Trendelenburg position. - ANSWER A. give the woman oxygen by facemask.
The nurse-midwife is concerned that a woman's uterine activity is too intense and that her obesity is
preventing accurate assessment of the actual intrauterine pressure. On the basis of this information,
the nurse should obtain:
A. a tocotransducer.
B. an intrauterine pressure catheter.
,C. a scalp electrode.
D. a Doppler transducer. - ANSWER B. an intrauterine pressure catheter.
After a forceps-assisted birth, the mother is observed to have continuous bright red lochia but a firm
fundus. What other data would indicate the presence of a potential vaginal wall hematoma?
A. Mild, intermittent perineal pain
B. Edema and discoloration of the labia and perineum
C. Lack of an episiotomy
D. Lack of pain in the perineal area - ANSWER B. Edema and discoloration of the labia and perineum
To provide safe care for the woman, the nurse understands that which condition is a
contraindication for an amniotomy?
A. 2 station
B. Dilation less than 3 cm
C. Right occiput posterior position
D. Cephalic presentation - ANSWER A. 2 station
What is the primary nursing measure to promote fetal descent?
A. Remind the woman to empty her bladder every 1 to 2 hours.
B. Assist fetal head rotation while doing a vaginal examination.
C. Have a woman push atleast three times with each contraction.
D. Promote intake of glucose-containing fluids during labor. - ANSWER A. Remind the woman to
empty her bladder every 1 to 2 hours.
This is the first postoperative day for a client who delivered by cesarean. The client asks the nurse
why she has to get up and walk when it hurts her incision so much. The nurse responds that:
A. Walking decreases the risk of blood clots after surgery.
B. Walking encourages deep breaths to blow off the anesthetic from surgery.
, C. Early ambulation is important to stimulate milk production.
D. Walking will decrease the occurrence of afterpains. - ANSWER A. Walking decreases the risk of
blood clots after surgery.
A woman at 40 weeks of gestation should be instructed to go to a hospital or birth center for
evaluation when she experiences:
A. irregular contractions for 1 hour.
B. a trickle of fluid from the vagina.
C. thick pink or dark red vaginal mucus.
D. fetal movement. - ANSWER B. a trickle of fluid from the vagina.
If a woman's fundus is soft 30 minutes after birth, the nurse's first response should be to:
A. massage the fundus
B. take the blood pressure
C. notify the physician or nurse-midwife
D. place the woman in Trendelenburg position - ANSWER A. massage the fundus
The maternity nurse understands that as the uterus contracts during labor, maternal-fetal exchange
of oxygen and waste products:
A. continues except when placental functions are reduced.
B. diminishes as the spiral arteries are compressed.
C. is not significantly affected.
D. increases as blood pressure decreases. - ANSWER B. diminishes as the spiral arteries are
compressed.
Parents of a newborn with a forceps-assisted vaginal birth ask about small reddened areas on the
infant's cheeks. The nurse should tell them that the areas:
A. Are temporary and will disappear.
B. Are typical of all vaginal births.
