A nurse educator is teaching a group of nurses at a long-term care facility about atrial fibrillation in light of its prevalence in older adults. Which of the following statements by the nurses would the educator most want to correct?
A)
"The electrical impulses go in chaotic directions, and so the atria can't contract properly."
B)
"An ECG of someone in atrial fibrillation would be almost random in appearance."
C)
"The contraction of the ventricles and the atria can range from 400 to 600 beats/minute."
D)
"It can be hard to measure at the bedside because not all ventricular beats make a palpable pulse."
Ans:
C
Feedback:
While atrial contraction can range from 400 to 600 beats/minute, ventricular contraction is normally in the range of 80 to 180 beats/ minute during atrial fibrillation. The electrical impulses do go in chaotic, inappropriate directions, and the ECG can appear random. Measurement can be challenging because of the lack of pulses corresponding to all ventricular contractions.
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