The nurse cares for a client in Bryant's traction. The child has extensive edema and is unable to move either leg. Which does the nurse implement?
1. Notify the child's provider immediately.
2. Remove the legs from traction for 1 hour.
3. Apply warm moist compresses to both legs.
4. Adjust the amount of weight on the traction.
1
1. Bryant's traction suspends the client's legs vertically to realign the hips, thus pro-moting hip joint growth and development. With the legs suspended in the air, edema formation is very unusual because the positioning impairs perfusion to the feet while promoting venous return; the blood that is able to reach the toes drains quickly and efficiently. Nonetheless, impaired movement is consistent with neurovascular im-pairment. Because the pathology is in the hip, complications impairing perfusion or innervation to the legs potentially involve major structures and warrant further inves-tigation by the provider and nurse.
2 and 4. The health care team's response to the child's presentation can include re-moving the traction or adjusting the traction weight to resolve the problem; however, in the face of potential neurovascular impairment, the nurse collaborates with the provider before acting.
3. Heat aggravates edema because heat causes vasodilation.
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