Question 1

On a visit to administer the fifth in a series of 10 antibiotic doses,the home health nurse is told that the patient is now complaining about a bothersome vaginal discharge.The nurse will communicate the problem to arrange for medication and teaches the patient that this condition is probably the result of:

Accepted Answer

Antibiotics frequently wipe out good bacteria and cause other bacteria to overgrow,causing the vaginitis.

Question 2

The patient in early labor says to the nurse,"I will pass on protection from diseases,and the baby will not ever need any shots." The best response by the nurse should be:

Accepted Answer

Infants acquire antibodies from the mother,but they only last a few months.

Question 3

A patient who is receiving daily steroids for the control of a condition calls the nurse to ask advice about whether a small child who has been exposed to influenza should come and visit because she has not had any symptoms.An appropriate response by the office nurse would be:

Accepted Answer

Children,especially those who have been exposed to a contagious disease but are not yet symptomatic,are still very contagious,especially to the immunocompromised patient.

Question 4

The nurse is bathing a patient who is immunodeficient and suffering from a Cryptococcus infestation.The organism is classified as a:

Accepted Answer

Cryptococcus fungal infections can be life threatening.

Question 5

The patient with the diagnosis of Clostridium difficile infection asks what has caused the diarrhea.The nurse responds that it is caused by:

Accepted Answer

Superinfections such as Clostridium difficile are caused by long-term antibiotic therapy,which kills all the natural flora of the bowel and causes diarrhea.

Question 6

The school nurse cautions a group of parents about children playing barefoot on dirt that may lead them to be exposed to infections caused by:

Accepted Answer

Worms in the dirt seek entry through the foot skin and into the blood circulation,where they are carried to the lungs,coughed up into the mouth,and swallowed into the gastrointestinal (GI)tract,where they cause serious infections.Barefooted children who do not have proper hygiene are at risk for these worm infections.

Question 7

A patient has had several increasingly severe allergic reactions during last year's pollen season.This year,the patient comes regularly to the office to receive some antigen injections.The nurse teaches that these will:

Accepted Answer

Injections of increasing amounts of minute doses of the antigen will desensitize the body against the antigen.

Question 8

With the exposure to an antigen,the nurse explains that the initiator of the inflammatory response is the presence of histamine,which is released by the:

Accepted Answer

Basophils release histamine.

Question 9

The home health nurse recommends air conditioner duct cleaning as a precaution against diseases caused by:

Accepted Answer

Air blowing into a room may be the mode of transfer of fungi spores,which have remained dormant in the duct during nonuse.

Question 10

The school nurse starts a clean-up campaign at a local elementary school in an effort to combat some of the allergens that cause one of the most common allergic response disorders,which is:

Accepted Answer

Fungi are principle allergens that can trigger respiratory allergic responses such as asthma.

Question 11

The nurse explains that although some drugs reduce inflammation,they also hinder the body's immune response.Examples of such drugs are:

Accepted Answer

The immune response is dampened by corticosteroids.

Question 12

A community picnic is held.A number of the attendees become ill after the picnic.The pathogen in this case was acquired via:

Accepted Answer

Food at the picnic that was shared in common became the vehicle for transmission.

Question 13

The home health nurse is teaching the family that the most effective method to control the spread of communicable disease is to:

Accepted Answer

Good hand-washing is the cornerstone of infection control.

Question 14

The patient receiving a large intramuscular (IM)dose of antibiotic was asked to please wait 20 to 30 minutes before checking out.The reason for this request is that:

Accepted Answer

Antibiotic administration is a common cause of anaphylaxis.The patient is asked to wait to allow medical personnel to reverse the condition should it occur within minutes after an injection.

Question 15

When a mosquito or a fly carries an organism that infects another living organism,this mode of transmission is infection via:

Accepted Answer

Vector-borne diseases are carried from one host to another.Part of the life cycle of the pathogen occurs in the body of the fly,mosquito,or tick.

Question 16

The nurse caring for an patient who is immunosuppressed is diligent about protecting the patient from infection.When visitors come in,in addition to having them put on isolation attire,the nurse prohibits them from bringing a:

Accepted Answer

The soil in the flower pot is a reservoir for bacteria and fungi.

Question 17

The large,heavy,and older adult patient after a stroke develops an infected decubitus on the sacrum during the hospital stay.Approximately 2 weeks after the patient has gone home,the patient returns to the hospital with pneumonia.The distinction between these two infections is:

Accepted Answer

Because the decubitus developed during the stay in a health care facility,it is classified as a health care-associated infection.Because the patient did not have pneumonia when he left the facility,it is classified as a community-acquired infection.

Question 18

The nurse explains that a medication given to a patient with a severe inflammatory response mimics a hormone secreted by the adrenal cortex.This hormone is:

Accepted Answer

Cortisol slows the release of antihistamine and stabilizes lysosomal membranes.

Question 19

The nurse assesses that the patient who has acquired a health care-associated infection is most likely the patient with:

Accepted Answer

Iatrogenic or health care-associated infections are those acquired during the hospital stay.Urinary catheters are frequently the source of such infections.Abscesses frequently follow a ruptured appendix; lice and athlete's foot are long-term conditions not caused by hospital interventions.

Question 20

The nurse is discussing the body's first and second lines of defense against infection with a community group.The first line of defense includes:

Accepted Answer

The sweat glands excrete an antimicrobial enzyme.

Quiz 13: Inflammation, infection, and Immunity