A client is diagnosed with an abdominal aortic aneurysm that the physician just wants to "watch" for now. When teaching the client about signs/symptoms to watch for, the nurse will base the teaching on which of the following physiological principles?

Question

A) Small diameter of this vessel will cause it to rupture more readily.
B) The larger the aneurysm, the less tension placed on the vessel.
C) As the aneurysm grows, more tension is placed on the vessel wall, which increases the risk for rupture.
D) The primary cause for rupture relates to increase in abdominal pressure such as straining to have a bowel movement.

Answer 1

Ans: C
Feedback:
Because the pressure is equal throughout, the tension in the part of the balloon with the smaller radius is less than the tension in the section with the larger radius. The same holds true for an arterial aneurysm in which the tension and risk of rupture increase as the aneurysm grows in size. Wall tension is inversely related to wall thickness, such that the thicker the vessel wall, the lower the tension, and vice versa. Although arteries have a thicker muscular wall than veins, their distensibility allows them to store some of the blood that is ejected from the heart during systole, providing for continuous flow through the capillaries as the heart relaxes during diastole.