The following are nursing care measures commonly offered to women in labor. Which nursing measure reflects application of the gate control theory?
1. Massage the woman's back.
2. Change the woman's position.
3. Give the prescribed medication.
4. Encourage the woman to rest between contractions.
1
1. Correct. According to the gate-control theory, pain sensations travel along sensory nerve pathways to the brain, but only a limited number of sensations, or messages, can travel through these nerve pathways at one time. Distraction techniques such as massage or stroking, music, focal points, and imagery reduce or completely block the capacity of nerve pathways to transmit pain. These distractions are thought to work by closing down a hypothetic gate in the spinal cord, thus preventing pain signals from reaching the brain. The perception of pain is thereby dimi-nished.
2, 3, 4. Incorrect. These activities do not reduce or block the capacity of nerve pathways to transmit pain using the gate-control theory.
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