A nurse is performing an abdominal assessment of an older adult patient. When collecting and analyzing data, the nurse should be cognizant of what age-related change in gastrointestinal structure and function?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Older adults tend to secrete less mucus than younger adults. Gastric motility slows with age and gastric $\mathrm{pH}$ rises due to decreased secretion of gastric acids. Older adults tend to have a blunted gag reflex compared to younger adults.

A Nurse Is Performing an Abdominal Assessment of an Older pH\mathrm{pH}pH

A Nurse Is Performing an Abdominal Assessment of an Older $\mathrm{pH}$