Exam 36: Nursing Management: Dysrhythmias

The nurse notes that a patient's cardiac monitor shows that every other beat is earlier than expected, has no P wave, and has a QRS complex with a wide and bizarre shape. How will the nurse document the rhythm?

A patient's cardiac monitor has a pattern of undulations of varying contours and amplitude with no measurable ECG pattern. The patient is unconscious and pulseless. Which action should the nurse take first?

When analyzing an electrocardiographic (ECG) rhythm strip of a patient with a regular cardiac rhythm, the nurse finds there are 25 small blocks from one R wave to the next. The nurse calculates the patient's heart rate as ____________________.

A patient develops sinus bradycardia at a rate of 32 beats/minute, has a BP of 80/36 mm Hg, and is complaining of feeling faint. Which action should the nurse take?

Which laboratory result for a patient whose cardiac monitor shows multifocal premature ventricular contractions (PVCs) is most important for the nurse to communicate to the health care provider?

A patient has a junctional escape rhythm on the monitor. The nurse will expect the patient to have a heart rate of how many beats/minute?

A patient whose cardiac monitor shows sinus tachycardia, rate 102, is apneic and no pulses are palpable by the nurse. What is the first action that the nurse should take?

A patient who is complaining of a "racing" heart and nervousness comes to the emergency department. The nurse places the patient on a cardiac monitor and obtains the following electrocardiographic (ECG) tracing. Which action should the nurse take next?

Which information will the nurse include when teaching a patient who is scheduled to have a permanent pacemaker inserted for treatment of chronic atrial fibrillation with slow ventricular response?

A patient has a normal cardiac rhythm and a heart rate of 72 beats/minute, except that the PR interval is 0.24 seconds. The appropriate intervention by the nurse is to

The nurse obtains a monitor strip on a patient who has had a myocardial infarction and makes the following analysis: P wave not apparent, ventricular rate 162, R-R interval regular, P-R interval not measurable, and QRS complex wide and distorted, QRS duration 0.18 second. The nurse interprets the patient's cardiac rhythm as

Which action should the nurse take when preparing for cardioversion of a patient with supraventricular tachycardia who is alert and has a blood pressure of 110/66 mm Hg?

The nurse has received change-of-shift report about the following patients on the telemetry unit. Which patient should the nurse see first?

When a patient requires defibrillation, in which order will the nurse accomplish the following steps? Put a comma and space between each solve choice (a, b, c, d, etc.) ____________________ A) Turn the defibrillator on. B) Deliver the electrical charge. C) Select the appropriate energy level. D) Place the paddles on the patient's chest. E) Check the location of other personnel and call out "all clear."

The nurse needs to estimate quickly the heart rate for a patient with a regular heart rhythm. Which method will be best to use?

A patient with dilated cardiomyopathy has an atrial fibrillation that has been unresponsive to drug therapy for several days. The nurse anticipates that the patient may need teaching about

A patient has received instruction on the management of a new permanent pacemaker before discharge from the hospital. The nurse recognizes that teaching has been effective when the patient tells the nurse,

A patient who is on the telemetry unit develops atrial flutter, rate 150, with associated dyspnea and diaphoresis. Which of these actions that are included in the hospital dysrhythmia protocol should the nurse take first?

A patient's cardiac monitor shows sinus rhythm, rate 60 to 70. The P-R interval is 0.18 seconds at 1:00 AM, 0.20 seconds at 2:30 PM, and 0.23 seconds at 4:00 PM. Which action should the nurse take at this time?

To determine whether there is a delay in impulse conduction through the atria, the nurse will measure the length of the patient's