Practice Question
The preoperative client reports to the nurse that she did not eat or drink anything after midnight on the day of surgery. The nurse knows this reduces the risk of which of the following complications?
Answer Choices:
Correct Answer:
Aspiration pneumonia
Rationale:
🫁Pre-operative NPO status reduces gastric volume and acidity, lowering the risk that gastric contents will be regurgitated and aspirated under anesthesia.
🫁Airway reflexes are blunted with sedatives and anesthetics, making aspiration the primary concern when stomach contents are present.
🫁Aspiration can cause chemical pneumonitis, hypoxemia, and respiratory failure, so fasting guidelines are central to safety.
🫁NPO policies reflect current anesthesia standards (e.g., clear liquids up to 2 hrs, light meals longer), all aimed at aspiration risk reduction.
🫁Verifying and documenting NPO status is a core nursing responsibility in the pre-op checklist.
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This question is from NSG 1221 Summer 2025 Exam 3 which contains 77 questions.
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Question Details
- Category: LPN Nursing Exam(s)
- Subcategory: 💎Examplify-PN
- Domain: 🔔 Fundamentals of Nursing-PN
- Answer Choices: 4