Practice Question
A nurse is caring for a client who is taking prednisone for long-term treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. The nurse should monitor the client for which of the following adverse effects of this medication?
Answer Choices:
Correct Answer:
Bone loss
Rationale:
🟧 Long-term prednisone increases risk of osteoporosis by decreasing bone formation and increasing bone resorption.
🟧 It also reduces calcium absorption and alters vitamin D metabolism, worsening bone density over time.
🟧 Clients on chronic steroids have higher fracture risk, especially in the spine, hip, and wrist.
🟧 Monitoring includes assessing fracture risk, encouraging weight-bearing activity as appropriate, and ensuring adequate calcium/vitamin D per provider plan.
🟧 Recognizing bone loss as a key chronic complication helps prevent serious long-term morbidity.
Liver toxicity
🟧 Prednisone is not primarily associated with liver toxicity as a common adverse effect.
🟧 Other medications are more characteristically hepatotoxic than corticosteroids.
Hypoglycemia
🟧 Prednisone more commonly causes hyperglycemia, not hypoglycemia.
🟧 It raises blood glucose by promoting gluconeogenesis and insulin resistance.
Hemolytic anemia
🟧 Hemolytic anemia is not a typical adverse effect of prednisone therapy.
🟧 Steroids are sometimes used to treat immune-mediated hemolysis rather than cause it.
Want to practice more questions like this?
This question is from ☑️ ATI RN Pharmacology 2023 VIII which contains 68 questions.
More Questions from This Exam
A nurse is caring for a female client in an outpatient clinic.
Answer Choices:
A nurse is caring for a group of clients. For which the following situations should the nurse complete an Incident report?
Answer Choices:
A nurse is monitoring a client who is receiving continuous IV propofol. Which of the following actions should the nurse take to maintain the client's IV site?
Answer Choices:
A nurse is caring for a client who is receiving propofol for an outpatient colonoscopy. Which of the following is a priority for the nurse to monitor?
Answer Choices:
Question Details
- Category: RN Nursing Exam(s)
- Subcategory: ATI Exam(s)
- Domain: RN ATI Pharmacology
- Answer Choices: 4