A patient, age 24, had a traumatic amputation of his left foot in a motorcycle accident. He is receiving morphine by a patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) device. He complains of a burning sensation in his left foot. The nurse should explain that
a. this is a phantom pain and that its cause is not clearly understood.
b. this is not possible because his foot was amputated.
c. his regular pain medication will relieve the pain.
d. this phantom pain will disappear in about 1 week.
A
Phantom pain (pain felt in the missing extremity as if it were still present) may occur and be frightening to the patient. Phantom pain occurs because the nerve tracts that register pain in the amputated area continued to send a message to the brain (this is normal).
You might also like to view...
The nurse is caring for a resident who has a security device for safety purposes. What interven-tion must the nurse include in the plan of care?
a. Visually check the resident every hour. b. Turn and reposition the resident every hour. c. Assess condition of the skin every 4 hours. d. Reassess the need for the security device every 4 to 8 hours.
The nurse is performing a visual examination on a client with complaints of black dots appearing in the visual field. Which statement by the nurse is most appropriate in this situation?
A. "You may have a cataract." B. "We need to refer you to an eye surgeon immediately." C. "The black dots are known as floaters and are usually normal." D. "You may have glaucoma."
An example of an intercommunity stressor affecting a community is
a. Power lines adjacent to an elementary school b. Bussing of students c. Decreased state funding for services d. High teen pregnancy rate
While planning care for a child who has excoriation disorder, which of the following would be the priority NANDA?
A) Hopelessness B) Dysfunctional family processes C) Ineffective role performance D) Impaired skin integrity