A nurse is caring for a patient and her newborn immediately after delivery. The patient's medication history includes prenatal vitamins throughout pregnancy, one or two glasses of wine before knowing she was pregnant, occasional use of an albuterol inhaler in her last trimester, and intravenous morphine during labor. What will the nurse expect to do?

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Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Narcotics given for pain during labor cross the placenta and can cause respiratory depression in the infant. Nurses must be prepared to provide respiratory support and to give naloxone to reverse the narcotic effects if necessary. Exposure to opioids during labor is not sufficient to cause dependence, so withdrawal syndrome is not an issue. Infants withdrawing from drugs have a high-pitched cry and are irritable, which is not expected in this case. Any drug taken during the first weeks of pregnancy tends to have an "all or none" effect, meaning that they either cause death of the conceptus or, if sublethal, the conceptus recovers.

A Nurse Is Caring for a Patient and Her Newborn