The Nurse Understands That When the Spinal Cord Is Injured

question 14

Multiple Choice

The nurse understands that when the spinal cord is injured, ischemia results and edema occurs. How should the nurse explain to the patient the reason that the extent of injury cannot be determined for several days to a week?

• A)"Tissue repair does not begin for 72 hours."
• B)"The edema extends the level of injury for two cord segments above and below the affected level."
• C)"Neurons need time to regenerate so stating the injury early is not predictive of how the patient progresses."
• D)"Necrosis of gray and white matter does not occur until days after the injury."

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Definitions:

Manipulated

Refers to the controlled alteration or handling of variables in experiments to determine cause-and-effect relationships.

Placebo Effect

The phenomenon that occurs in an experiment when a participant’s response to a treatment is due to his or her expectations about the treatment rather than to the treatment itself.

Sugar Pill

A placebo, often used in medical trials to test the efficacy of new drugs by comparing their effects to those of an inert pill.

Drowsy

A feeling of being sleepily tired and lethargic, not fully awake, often as a prelude to falling asleep.