In the assessment of older-adult clients, it is often difficult to discriminate between delirium and dementia. Delirium is characterized by:
1. A slow progression
2. Lasting months to years
3. A normal state of alertness
4. Occurrences at twilight or darkness
ANS: 4
Delirium is characterized by short, diurnal fluctuations in symptoms and is worse at night, in darkness, and on awakening. Delirium has an abrupt onset. Dementia has a slow progression. De-lirium lasts hours to less than 1 month, seldom longer. Dementia may last months to years. Delir-ium is characterized by fluctuating alertness; the client may be lethargic or hypervigilant. Alert-ness is generally normal with dementia.
You might also like to view...
A nurse considers beneficence as the guiding ethical principle for nursing practice. Working within that framework, which action by the nurse best demonstrates that concept?
A. Administering a pain medication before therapy so that the patient can participate B. Allowing the patient to make informed choices as to his or her plan of care C. Promising a pain medication in 1 hour and returning with it on time D. Turning patients to prevent pressure sores, despite causing temporary discomfort
A patient is being treated for benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). The patient asks the nurse how the medicine used to treat BPH is supposed to work
The nurse explains that the drug therapy is designed to relieve the symptoms associated with this condition by doing what? A) Shrinking the gland and/or relaxing the sphincter of the bladder B) Increasing testosterone levels to improve sexual functioning C) Increasing blood pressure, which will increase blood flow to the area D) Activate nitric acid, which will dilate blood vessels in the area to relieve pressure
The nurse interprets the Nurse Licensure Compact as
a. an agreement between all states to recog-nize the license of all graduate nurses. b. an intrastate agreement for the nurse to practice in any area within the state. c. an agreement between the state boards of nursing and the National Council regard-ing foreign nurses. d. an agreement between compact states to recognize licensure from member states.
Conceptualization and in-depth understanding of the problem and the target population are key issues in what phase of the framework?
A) 1 B) 2 C) 3 D) 4