A nurse is educating a client who has been prescribed phenelzine, an MAOI, for treatment-resistant depression. Which of the following instructions is most critical to prevent potentially life-threatening complications associated with this medication?
Avoid foods high in tyramine, such as aged cheeses, smoked meats, and fermented products.
Use over-the-counter cold medications containing pseudoephedrine cautiously.
Take the medication with food to minimize gastrointestinal upset.
Avoid driving or operating heavy machinery until the effects are known.
The Correct Answer is A
Choice A reason: The most critical teaching with MAOIs is to avoid foods containing tyramine. Eating these foods can trigger a hypertensive crisis, a potentially fatal complication.
Choice B reason: Cold medications with pseudoephedrine may also increase blood pressure and should be avoided, but dietary restrictions are more essential because food exposure is more common and life-threatening if overlooked.
Choice C reason: Taking the medication with food may reduce mild gastrointestinal side effects, but this is not the priority safety teaching.
Choice D reason: Avoiding hazardous activities until medication effects are known is general advice for many psychotropic drugs, but it is not specific or lifesaving for MAOI therapy.
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Naxlex Comprehensive Predictor Exams
Related Questions
Correct Answer is ["B","D","E"]
Explanation
Choice A reason: Sharing personal loss shifts the focus away from the patient, which is not therapeutic. Self-disclosure in this way can hinder supportive communication.
Choice B reason: Suggesting a grief support group acknowledges the patient’s feelings while offering a constructive coping resource. It validates distress and provides support.
Choice C reason: Leaving the patient when they are emotionally vulnerable conveys abandonment instead of support, which is not therapeutic.
Choice D reason: Normalizing grief as a process that takes time offers reassurance without minimizing the client’s emotions. It helps the patient understand that healing is gradual.
Choice E reason: Encouraging the patient to share coping strategies promotes expression of feelings and helps the nurse assess adaptive versus maladaptive coping mechanisms.
Correct Answer is ["A","B","E"]
Explanation
Choice A reason: Monitoring after meals reduces opportunities for purging behaviors such as vomiting or excessive exercise, which are common in bulimia nervosa.
Choice B reason: Electrolyte disturbances, particularly hypokalemia, are common due to vomiting and laxative abuse. Ongoing assessment is critical for patient safety.
Choice C reason: Continuing laxative use perpetuates the disorder and poses health risks such as dehydration and bowel damage. This is contraindicated.
Choice D reason: Food diaries are sometimes used in therapy to help patients increase awareness of eating patterns. Outright prohibition may remove a useful therapeutic tool unless misused.
Choice E reason: Patients with bulimia may attempt to conceal evidence of binge eating. Being attentive to hidden or discarded wrappers is an important part of monitoring.
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