The nurse,caring for a patient following a subarachnoid hemorrhage,begins a nicardipine (Cardene)infusion.Baseline blood pressure assessed by the nurse is 170/100 mm Hg.Five minutes after beginning the infusion at 5 mg/hr,the nurse assesses the patient's blood pressure to be 160/90 mm Hg.What is the best action by the nurse?
A) Stop the infusion for 5 minutes.
B) Increase the dose by 2.5 mg/hr.
C) Notify the physician of the BP.
D) Begin weaning the infusion.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Medications to control blood pressure are administered to prevent rebleeding before an aneurysm is secured.Following infusion,the patient's blood pressure remains dangerously high,so increasing the dose by 2.5 mg/hr is the best action by the nurse.Stopping the infusion or weaning the infusion is contraindicated before reaching the desired blood pressure.Notifying the physician of the blood pressure is not indicated until the upper limits of the infusion are reached without achieving the desired blood pressure.

The Nurse,caring for a Patient Following a Subarachnoid Hemorrhage,begins a Nicardipine