Pericarditis A woman had an acute anterior MI 7 days ago. She was readmitted to the critical care unit (CCU) with sharp, substemal chest pain worsening with inspiration, shortness of breath, and...

Pericarditis

A woman had an acute anterior MI 7 days ago. She was readmitted to the critical care unit (CCU) with sharp, substemal chest pain worsening with inspiration, shortness of breath, and ST-segment elevations in the precordial leads and in leads I and II. The chest pain was unrelieved with nitroglycerin. Her pain was decreased after receiving 4 mg of morphine IV. The pain went away completely when she sat up and leaned forward so that her nurse could auscultate posterior breath sounds.

A classic sign of pericarditis is:

(A) Sharp pain on inspiration relieved by leaning forward

(B) Distended neck veins

(C) Narrow pulse pressure

(D) Cough

An important nursing action for this patientie to:

(A) Continue to administer morphine for pain

(B) Encourage patient to ambulate as much as possible

(C) Alleviate anxiety by informing patient this is not another heart attack

(D) Encourage deep breathing exercises to expand the lung