The nurse is caring for a patient who underwent abdominal surgery 24 hours ago and has a nasogastric tube for intermittent suction. How should the nurse proceed when performing an abdominal assessment on this patient?
a. Avoid palpating the patient's abdomen.
b. Turn off the suction before auscultating bowel sounds.
c. Listen for bowel sounds for 2 minutes in each quadrant.
d. Percuss the abdomen before auscultating bowel sounds.
B
The sound of suction attached to a nasogastric tube can be mistaken for bowel sounds; therefore, the nurse should discontinue the suction or clamp off the tube while auscultating bowel sounds. Light palpation can be performed in the postoperative patient. The nurse should listen for bowel sounds for at least 5 minutes before determining that they are absent. Auscultation should be performed before percussion in examining the abdomen.
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