A nurse is caring for a client who is postoperative and has an NG tube that has drained 2,500 ml. In the past 6 hr. The nurse should monitor the client for which of the following electrolyte Imbalances?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A.
Decreased potassium level<\/p>\n\n\n\n
B.
Decreased calcium level<\/p>\n\n\n\n
C.
Elevated magnesium level<\/p>\n\n\n\n
D.
Elevated sodium level<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The correct answer and Explanation is :<\/strong><\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n The correct answer is A. Decreased potassium level<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After surgery, patients may experience gastrointestinal (GI) issues that lead to the use of a nasogastric (NG) tube to drain excess fluids and gastric contents. In this scenario, the client has had an NG tube that has drained 2,500 ml in the past six hours. This significant volume of drainage can lead to various electrolyte imbalances, particularly concerning potassium levels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Potassium<\/strong> is a crucial electrolyte in maintaining cellular function, muscle contractions, and cardiac rhythms. The normal range for potassium is typically between 3.5 and 5.0 mEq\/L. Prolonged NG tube drainage can lead to hypokalemia (decreased potassium levels) due to the loss of gastric secretions, which contain potassium. Additionally, significant fluid loss can contribute to dehydration and subsequent renal compensation, further exacerbating potassium depletion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Patients at risk for hypokalemia may exhibit symptoms such as muscle weakness, fatigue, palpitations, and abnormal cardiac rhythms. Monitoring potassium levels in postoperative clients with significant NG tube drainage is essential to prevent complications associated with low potassium.<\/p>\n\n\n\n While other electrolytes may also be affected during postoperative recovery and with NG tube use, the primary concern in this scenario is potassium. Calcium<\/strong> levels are not typically affected by gastric drainage; magnesium<\/strong> levels are less commonly elevated in this context; and sodium<\/strong> levels may vary, but significant sodium elevation is less likely from the loss of gastric contents alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In summary, given the large volume of fluid loss through the NG tube, the nurse should closely monitor the client for signs of hypokalemia<\/strong> and ensure that potassium levels are maintained within the normal range to promote safe recovery post-surgery.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A nurse is caring for a client who is postoperative and has an NG tube that has drained 2,500 ml. In the past 6 hr. The nurse should monitor the client for which of the following electrolyte Imbalances? A.Decreased potassium level B.Decreased calcium level C.Elevated magnesium level D.Elevated sodium level The correct answer and Explanation […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-141984","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-exams-certification"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/141984","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=141984"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/141984\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=141984"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=141984"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=141984"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Explanation:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n