VNSG 1400: Chapter 11 Prep U
Questions and All Correct Answers
2025.
A home health nurse is visiting a client who has been taking the same dose of
acetaminophen/hydrocodone for 2 months. To monitor for the presence of expected side
effects of this medication, what should the nurse include in the assessment of the client? -
Answer Ask about the client's bowel pattern
Explanation: Opioids can result in delayed gastric emptying, slowed bowel motility, and
decreased peristalsis, all of which result in slow-moving, hard stool that is difficult to pass.
Constipation is a very common side effect of narcotics and can continue to be a problem, even
with chronic administration. Although respiratory depression, decreased level of consciousness,
and hypotension are common side effects of acute use of narcotics, these effects are not
expected to occur with chronic use at the same dose.
A client is admitted with generalized abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and hypotension. The
client has not passed stool in over 1 week and has been in pain for the past 4 days. Which type
of pain would you expect the client to be experiencing? - Answer Visceral
Explanation: Visceral pain arises from internal organs such as the heart, kidneys, and intestine
that are diseased or injured. Visceral pain usually is diffuse, poorly localized, and accompanied
by autonomic nervous system symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, pallor, hypotension, and
sweating. Neuropathic pain is pain that is processed abnormally by the nervous system. Deeper
somatic pain such as that caused by trauma produces localized sensations that are sharp,
throbbing, and intense. Chronic pain has a duration longer than 6 months.
Nociception includes four specific processes: transduction, transmission, perception, and
modulation. Which action illustrates the nociception process of pain transmission? - Answer A
child quickly removing a hand when touching a hot object
Explanation:Transduction, the first process involved in nociception, refers to the processes by
which a noxious stimulus, such as a burn, releases of a number of excitatory compounds, which
move pain along the pain pathway. Transmission, the second process involved in nociception, is
responsible for a rapid reflex withdrawal from painful stimulus. The third process involved in
nociception is perception. Imagery is based on the belief that the brain processes can strongly
influence pain perception. A dual-mechanism analgesic agent, such as tramadol, involves many
different neurochemicals as in the process of modulation.
, Explanation:NSAIDs such as Advil increase the risk of gastrointestinal (GI) toxicity in individuals
>60 years of age and should be assessed further before administration. Many risk factors exist
for opioid-induced respiratory depression in individuals >65 years old; a thorough respiratory
assessment is indicated. Acetaminophen should be used for mild pain. Nonpharmacologic
methods of pain management, such as TENS, are acceptable in this situation. Society has
proposed that opioids are a safer choice than NSAIDs in many older adults because of the
increased risk for NSAID-induced adverse GI effects in that population.
A client's intractable neuropathic pain is being treated using a multimodal approach to
analgesia. After administering a recently increased dose of IV morphine to the client, the nurse
has returned to assess the client and finds the client unresponsive to verbal and physical
stimulation with a respiratory rate of five breaths per minute. The nurse has called a code blue
and should anticipate the administration of what drug? - Answer Naloxone
Explanation: Severe opioid-induced sedation necessitates the administration of naloxone, an
opioid antagonist. Celecoxib, acetylcysteine, and acetylsalicylic acid are ineffective.
The patient develops respiratory depression after the nurse administers fentanyl for pain. What
medication can the nurse anticipate administering to counteract the effects of the fentanyl? -
Answer Narcan
Explanation: Antagonists (e.g., naloxone [Narcan], naltrexone) are drugs that also bind to opioid
receptors but produce no analgesia. If an antagonist is present, it competes with opioid
molecules for binding sites on the opioid receptors and has the potential to block analgesia and
other effects. They are used most often to reverse adverse effects, such as respiratory
depression.
Which of the following is a misconception about pain and analgesia? - Answer Chronic pain is
due to a psychological disturbance.
Explanation: There is a misconception that chronic pain is due to a psychological disturbance.
There is no evidence that stress causes pain. It is rare for chronic pain patients to misrepresent
their symptoms. The stress of managing chronic pain may lead to depression.
The physician has ordered a mu opioid analgesic for a patient with pain. What drug does the
nurse anticipate administering? - Answer Fentanyl
Questions and All Correct Answers
2025.
A home health nurse is visiting a client who has been taking the same dose of
acetaminophen/hydrocodone for 2 months. To monitor for the presence of expected side
effects of this medication, what should the nurse include in the assessment of the client? -
Answer Ask about the client's bowel pattern
Explanation: Opioids can result in delayed gastric emptying, slowed bowel motility, and
decreased peristalsis, all of which result in slow-moving, hard stool that is difficult to pass.
Constipation is a very common side effect of narcotics and can continue to be a problem, even
with chronic administration. Although respiratory depression, decreased level of consciousness,
and hypotension are common side effects of acute use of narcotics, these effects are not
expected to occur with chronic use at the same dose.
A client is admitted with generalized abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and hypotension. The
client has not passed stool in over 1 week and has been in pain for the past 4 days. Which type
of pain would you expect the client to be experiencing? - Answer Visceral
Explanation: Visceral pain arises from internal organs such as the heart, kidneys, and intestine
that are diseased or injured. Visceral pain usually is diffuse, poorly localized, and accompanied
by autonomic nervous system symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, pallor, hypotension, and
sweating. Neuropathic pain is pain that is processed abnormally by the nervous system. Deeper
somatic pain such as that caused by trauma produces localized sensations that are sharp,
throbbing, and intense. Chronic pain has a duration longer than 6 months.
Nociception includes four specific processes: transduction, transmission, perception, and
modulation. Which action illustrates the nociception process of pain transmission? - Answer A
child quickly removing a hand when touching a hot object
Explanation:Transduction, the first process involved in nociception, refers to the processes by
which a noxious stimulus, such as a burn, releases of a number of excitatory compounds, which
move pain along the pain pathway. Transmission, the second process involved in nociception, is
responsible for a rapid reflex withdrawal from painful stimulus. The third process involved in
nociception is perception. Imagery is based on the belief that the brain processes can strongly
influence pain perception. A dual-mechanism analgesic agent, such as tramadol, involves many
different neurochemicals as in the process of modulation.
, Explanation:NSAIDs such as Advil increase the risk of gastrointestinal (GI) toxicity in individuals
>60 years of age and should be assessed further before administration. Many risk factors exist
for opioid-induced respiratory depression in individuals >65 years old; a thorough respiratory
assessment is indicated. Acetaminophen should be used for mild pain. Nonpharmacologic
methods of pain management, such as TENS, are acceptable in this situation. Society has
proposed that opioids are a safer choice than NSAIDs in many older adults because of the
increased risk for NSAID-induced adverse GI effects in that population.
A client's intractable neuropathic pain is being treated using a multimodal approach to
analgesia. After administering a recently increased dose of IV morphine to the client, the nurse
has returned to assess the client and finds the client unresponsive to verbal and physical
stimulation with a respiratory rate of five breaths per minute. The nurse has called a code blue
and should anticipate the administration of what drug? - Answer Naloxone
Explanation: Severe opioid-induced sedation necessitates the administration of naloxone, an
opioid antagonist. Celecoxib, acetylcysteine, and acetylsalicylic acid are ineffective.
The patient develops respiratory depression after the nurse administers fentanyl for pain. What
medication can the nurse anticipate administering to counteract the effects of the fentanyl? -
Answer Narcan
Explanation: Antagonists (e.g., naloxone [Narcan], naltrexone) are drugs that also bind to opioid
receptors but produce no analgesia. If an antagonist is present, it competes with opioid
molecules for binding sites on the opioid receptors and has the potential to block analgesia and
other effects. They are used most often to reverse adverse effects, such as respiratory
depression.
Which of the following is a misconception about pain and analgesia? - Answer Chronic pain is
due to a psychological disturbance.
Explanation: There is a misconception that chronic pain is due to a psychological disturbance.
There is no evidence that stress causes pain. It is rare for chronic pain patients to misrepresent
their symptoms. The stress of managing chronic pain may lead to depression.
The physician has ordered a mu opioid analgesic for a patient with pain. What drug does the
nurse anticipate administering? - Answer Fentanyl
