Practice Question
The nurse is caring for a client
Answer Choices:
Correct Answer:
Provide warm blankets.
Rationale:
Provide warm blankets
🍃 The client’s temperature is 35.6°C (96.1°F), indicating hypothermia, which is a classic sign of severe hypothyroidism (myxedema).
🍃 Providing warm blankets is a safe, supportive measure to gradually raise the core body temperature.
🍃 Rapid rewarming is avoided; gentle warming prevents cardiovascular stress.
Place the client on a cardiac monitor
✳️ The client’s heart rate is 49/min, showing bradycardia, another sign of severe hypothyroidism.
✳️ Bradycardia increases the risk of hypoperfusion, arrhythmias, and cardiac arrest.
✳️ Continuous cardiac monitoring is essential for detecting life-threatening changes early.
Administer levothyroxine
💎 The client has elevated TSH and low free T4, confirming primary hypothyroidism (likely untreated due to medication nonadherence).
💎 Levothyroxine is the first-line hormone replacement therapy and must be initiated promptly to restore thyroid function.
💎 It is essential to correct hormone deficiency and prevent progression to myxedema coma.
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This question is from RN ATI MedicalSurg W Exam which contains 22 questions.
More Questions from This Exam
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A client with a history of hypothyroidism has accidentally been taking double her prescribed dose of levothyroxine. Which assessment findings would the nurse expect due to an excess of this medication?
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Question Details
- Category: RN Nursing Exam(s)
- Subcategory: ATI Exam(s)
- Domain: RN ATI MedSurg
- Answer Choices: 7