A 60-year-old male office worker presents to a clinic complaining of new onset of lower back pain that has been worsening over the last 6 weeks
The nurse knows which of the following components of his physical assessment and history is most indicative of a serious pathological process (like aortic aneurysm or cancer)?
A)
His pain is relieved by extended bed rest.
B)
When supine, passive rising of his leg to 90 degrees results in hamstring pain.
C)
He has needed regular nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs to control the pain in recent weeks.
D)
His onset of pain has been gradual, and he has no prior history of lower back problems.
Ans:
D
Feedback:
The gradual onset of back pain unrelated to injury and initial presentation after age 50 are considered red flags for more serious pathologies such as aortic aneurysm, malignancy, or compression fracture. Pain that is aggravated by lying down is a red flag for malignancy or infection. The onset of hamstring pain at 90 degrees of hip flexion is a normal finding. The need for and use of NSAIDs for lower back pain relief are not indicative of a serious pathology in and of itself.
You might also like to view...
A patient receiving a blood transfusion begins to develop itchy hives. The nurse realizes the type of transfusion reaction this patient is experiencing is most likely
1. febrile. 2. allergic. 3. acute hemolytic. 4. lung injury.
The client receives tube feedings of 200 ml every 6 hours by intermittent gavage. The nurse prepares to administer the client's tube feeding and aspirates 200 ml of formula
Choose suitable interventions that the nurse should implement after aspirating the formula and rank the interven-tions in the correct order. 1. Collaborate with the provider. 2. Administer scheduled feeding. 3. Discard aspirated tube feeding. 4. Check for abdominal distention. 5. Administer the aspirated formula. 6. Flush feeding tube with tap water.
The prognosis is the cause of a disease.
Answer the following statement true (T) or false (F)
A pregnant woman's diet history indicates that she likes the following list of foods. The nurse would encourage this woman to consume more of which food to increase her calcium intake?
a. Fresh apricots c. Spaghetti with meat sauce b. Canned clams d. Canned sardines