A nurse is performing an admission assessment. The client complains that it has been taking larger and larger amounts of medication to get the desired effect. Based on this information, the nurse interprets this as suggesting which of the following?
A) Desensitization
B) Tolerance
C) Therapeutic index
D) Toxicity
Ans: B
Tolerance is a gradual decrease in the action of a drug at a given dose or concentration in the blood. This decrease may take days or weeks to develop and results in a loss of the therapeutic effect of a drug, necessitating an increase in medication to achieve the desired effect. Desensitization is a rapid decrease in drug effects that may develop within a few minutes of exposure to a drug. Toxicity generally refers to the point at which concentrations of the drug in the bloodstream are high enough to become harmful or poisonous to the body. Individuals vary widely in their responses to medications. Some clients experience adverse reactions more easily than others. The therapeutic index is the ratio of the maximum nontoxic dose to the minimum effective dose. A high therapeutic index means that there is a large range between the dose at which the drug begins to take effect and a dose that would be toxic to the body.
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