Allergic Reactions and Anaphylaxis for Certified Emergency Nursing (CEN)

Paramedics are transporting a 32-year-old woman with a severe anaphylactic reaction. The estimated time of arrival in the ED is 11 minutes. The nurse knows that anaphylaxis most commonly is precipitated by:

A 12-year-old boy arrives at the ED complaining of difficulty breathing. His parents inform the nurse that the family has a long history of asthma and that the child has suffered previous wheezing episodes but none this severe. Arterial blood gas (ABG) studies performed, while the patient is breathing room air (21% oxygen), reveal: pH 7.21, PO2 65 mmHg, PCO2 62 mmHg, and HCO3 – 24 mEq/L. The nurse would interpret this patient’s ABG result as:

A 12-year-old boy arrives at the ED complaining of difficulty breathing. His parents inform the nurse that the family has a long history of asthma and that the child has suffered previous wheezing episodes but none this severe. Arterial blood gas (ABG) studies performed, while the patient is breathing room air (21% oxygen), reveal: pH 7.21, PO2 65 mmHg, PCO2 62 mmHg, and HCO3 – 24 mEq/L. The nurse would interpret this patient’s ABG result as:

The nurse would expect immediate treatment of a severe allergic drug reaction to include administration of:

Which principle holds the highest priority when caring for a patient with a history of allergies?

A 12-year-old boy arrives at the ED complaining of difficulty breathing. His parents inform the nurse that the family has a long history of asthma and that the child has suffered previous wheezing episodes but none this severe. Arterial blood gas (ABG) studies performed, while the patient is breathing room air (21% oxygen), reveal: pH 7.21, PO2 65 mmHg, PCO2 62 mmHg, and HCO3 – 24 mEq/L. The nurse would interpret this patient’s ABG result as:

The patient stops breathing shortly after the nurse institutes inhaled bronchodilator therapy, as ordered. After initial ventilation with a bag-valve-mask device, the patient achieves good bilateral chest rising. He is then intubated with an orotracheal tube, and ventilation is continued. A repeat ABG analysis indicates pH, 7.12, PCO2 55 mmHg, PO2 33 mmHg, and HCO3 – 25 mEq/L. No loss of vital signs is noted. The patient is then given 100 mEq of sodium bicarbonate. Ten minutes later, ABG analysis indicates pH, 7.55, PCO2 35 mmHg, PO2 425 mmHg, and HCO3 – 36.5 mEq/L. Based on the latest ABG results, the nurse knows that the patient is exhibiting signs of:

A 50-year-old arrives at your ED complaining of nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and weakness that began about 90 minutes ago. The patient reports that he was eating at a seafood restaurant and the symptoms began shortly after eating there. Which of the following is the likely cause of this patient symptoms?

A 51-year-old woman was admitted to the ED about 2 hours ago. She has a history of asthma, and her admitting diagnosis is pneumonia. She is now complaining of breathing difficulty. The nurse notes an audible wheeze and an erythematous rash over the patient’s entire body; the rash was not noted on admission. The patient received an initial dose of penicillin by IV piggyback 1 hour ago but has no history of allergies to antibiotics. Which sign of anaphylaxis would the nurse expect to find while assessing this patient?

Which statement concerning allergic drug reactions is true?