During an assessment, a patient begins to cough. What should the nurse realize about this finding?
1. The patient has a cold.
2. The patient is nervous.
3. Something other than air was entering the larynx.
4. Something other than air was entering the epiglottis.
Correct Answer: 3
If anything other than air enters the larynx, a cough reflex expels the foreign substance before it can enter the lungs. It does not necessarily mean that the patient has a cold. Being nervous is not typically associated with coughing. The epiglottis is a valvelike piece of tissue, and nothing can enter it.
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