Gynecological Infections for Certified Emergency Nursing (CEN)

A 27-year-old woman is admitted to the ED after losing consciousness at home. Now fully alert, she complains of achiness, nausea, vomiting, and fever, which began yesterday morning. The patient has no medical or gynecologic history. She is 3 days into her menstrual period. She informs the nurse that she uses super-absorbent tampons and, occasionally, contraceptive sponges. The patient’s vital signs are blood pressure 86/48 mmHg, temperature 103o F (39.4oC), pulse rate 124 beats/minute, and respiratory rate 28 breaths/minute. Based on the above symptoms, the nurse would suspect that the patient has:

Which condition is a potential complication of PID?

A 21-year-old woman is admitted to the ED, complaining of a vaginal discharge and painful, frequent urination. An enzymelinked immunosorbent assay of vaginal discharge reveals gonorrhea. The nurse knows that anyone infected with gonorrhea also should be tested for:

Which statement indicates that a patient with PID who has been placed on continuing antibiotic therapy understands discharge instructions?

The nurse would suspect that the bacteria that causes toxic shock syndrome is caused by:

The nurse initiates a discussion about sexually transmitted diseases and the use of contraceptives. The patient’s decision to use which contraceptive method indicates the need for further teaching:

The nurse explains that recurrence of sexually transmitted diseases places the patient at increased risk for all of the following conditions except:

A 29-year-old woman is admitted to the ED with suspected pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). She is complaining of bilateral lower abdominal pain and a slight, whitish-yellow, odorless vaginal discharge. Her blood pressure is 100/70 mmHg, pulse rate 96 beats/minute, respiratory rate 24 breaths/minute, and temperature 100.6o F (38.1oC). The patient informs the nurse that she has had the discharge for 3 days and that the lower abdominal pain began 2 days ago and has become increasingly worse. Her fever has persisted since yesterday. She also mentions that she has an intrauterine device (IUD) in place. The physician orders a complete blood count, blood culture, and cervical culture as well as a urinalysis and ultrasound studies. Which organism causes PID?

Which history finding places a patient at increased risk for PID?

A 27-year-old woman is admitted to the ED after losing consciousness at home. Now fully alert, she complains of achiness, nausea, vomiting, and fever, which began yesterday morning. The patient has no medical or gynecologic history. She is 3 days into her menstrual period. She informs the nurse that she uses super-absorbent tampons and, occasionally, contraceptive sponges. The patient’s vital signs are blood pressure 86/48 mmHg, temperature 103o F (39.4oC), pulse rate 124 beats/minute, and respiratory rate 28 breaths/minute. Based on the above symptoms, the nurse would suspect that the patient has: