Newborn Assessment and Care Flashcards
6 cards from real Maternal Newborn Nursing Test practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 6 Newborn Assessment and Care flashcards as text
A newborn has a cephalohematoma identified on assessment. Which statement about cephalohematoma is accurate?
Answer: It is a collection of blood between the periosteum and skull bone limited by suture lines
A cephalohematoma is a subperiosteal hemorrhage confined by suture lines that does not cross sutures, distinguishing it from caput succedaneum which does cross suture lines.
The nurse assesses a newborn's respiratory rate as 68 breaths per minute consistently over 15 minutes. What condition does this most likely indicate?
Answer: Tachypnea suggesting respiratory distress
Normal newborn respiratory rate is 30–60 breaths per minute; a sustained rate of 68 breaths per minute is tachypnea indicating potential respiratory distress.
A breastfed newborn has a bilirubin level of 18 mg/dL at 5 days of life. The pediatrician suspects breast milk jaundice. Which action is most appropriate?
Answer: Increase breastfeeding frequency to 10–12 times per day
For breast milk jaundice with non-critical bilirubin levels, increasing breastfeeding frequency to 10–12 times per day promotes bilirubin excretion and is the preferred first intervention.
Which newborn screening test is mandatory in all US states and detects a condition that causes intellectual disability if untreated?
Answer: Phenylketonuria (PKU) blood spot screening
PKU screening via heel stick blood spot is mandated in all US states; untreated PKU causes severe intellectual disability due to phenylalanine accumulation, but dietary treatment prevents neurological damage.
A nurse is preparing to administer erythromycin ophthalmic ointment to a newborn. What is the purpose of this medication?
Answer: To provide prophylaxis against ophthalmia neonatorum from gonorrhea and Chlamydia
Erythromycin 0.5% ophthalmic ointment is administered to all newborns to prevent ophthalmia neonatorum, a serious eye infection that can cause blindness if caused by Neisseria gonorrhoeae.
A newborn is assessed and found to have Erb's palsy. Which structure was most likely injured during delivery?
Answer: Brachial plexus at C5–C6 nerve roots
Erb's palsy results from injury to the C5–C6 nerve roots of the brachial plexus, typically caused by excessive lateral traction on the head during a difficult delivery.