Respiratory and Pulmonary Care Flashcards
6 cards from real CMSRN practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 6 Respiratory and Pulmonary Care flashcards as text
A patient with COPD has an SpO2 of 88% and is on 2L/min nasal cannula. What is the most appropriate nursing action?
Answer: Maintain current settings as 88% is acceptable for COPD patients
COPD patients often retain CO2 and rely on hypoxic drive; SpO2 of 88–92% is the target range to avoid suppressing respiratory drive.
Which finding on a chest X-ray is most consistent with pneumothorax?
Answer: Absence of lung markings on one side
Pneumothorax appears on chest X-ray as absence of lung markings with a visible pleural line on the affected side.
A patient develops sudden severe dyspnea, tracheal deviation to the left, and absent breath sounds on the right. What condition does the nurse suspect?
Answer: Tension pneumothorax
Tension pneumothorax presents with severe dyspnea, tracheal deviation away from the affected side, and absent breath sounds — a life-threatening emergency.
When performing deep tracheal suctioning, the nurse should limit each suction pass to no more than:
Answer: 10–15 seconds
Each suction pass should be limited to 10–15 seconds to minimize hypoxia and mucosal trauma.
A patient is prescribed incentive spirometry post-operatively. What is the primary goal of this intervention?
Answer: Prevent atelectasis and promote lung expansion
Incentive spirometry encourages deep breathing to expand alveoli and prevent post-operative atelectasis.
Which arterial blood gas (ABG) result indicates respiratory acidosis?
Answer: pH 7.30, PaCO2 55, HCO3 24
Respiratory acidosis is characterized by low pH and elevated PaCO2 due to inadequate ventilation and CO2 retention.