A patient's blood pressure elevates to 270/150 mm Hg, and a hypertensive emergency is obvious. He is transferred to the intensive care unit and started on a sodium nitroprusside (Nipride) drip to be titrated per his response. With this medication, the nurse knows that the maximum dose of this drug should be infused for how long?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Sodium nitroprusside is a potent vasodilator and may lead to extreme decreases in the patient's blood pressure. For this reason, it is never infused at the maximum dose for more than 10 minutes. If this drug does not control a patient's blood pressure after 10 minutes, it will most likely be ordered to be discontinued. The other times listed are incorrect.

A Patient's Blood Pressure Elevates to 270/150 Mm Hg, and a Hypertensive