The nurse is assessing an older adult client who has osteoporosis and reports frequent falls.

The nurse should ask the client about which of the following factors that could contribute to falls?

(Select all that apply.).

The correct answer is D.

All of the above.

This is because all of these findings indicate that the client has experienced an improvement in mood, energy, appetite, sleep, interest and participation in social activities and hobbies, which are common signs of depression recovery.

Choice A is wrong because it only covers some of the symptoms of depression, such as mood, energy, appetite and sleep, but not others, such as interest and participation in social activities and hobbies.

Choice B is wrong because it only measures the client’s depression level using standardized scales, such as the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) or the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), but not their actual functioning and quality of life.

Choice C is wrong because it only reflects the client’s interest and participation in social activities and hobbies, which are important aspects of depression recovery, but not their mood, energy, appetite, sleep or depression level.

The GDS and the PHQ-9 are both valid and reliable tools for screening and measuring depression in older adults.

The GDS is a 15-item questionnaire that asks the client to answer yes or no to questions about their mood, satisfaction, hopelessness, helplessness, worthlessness, guilt, agitation, withdrawal and suicidal thoughts.

The PHQ-9 is a 9-item questionnaire that asks the client to rate how often they have experienced symptoms of depression in the past two weeks, such as depressed mood, anhedonia, insomnia or hypersomnia, fatigue, appetite or weight changes, concentration problems, feelings of worthlessness or guilt.

A. The client reports an improvement in mood, energy, appetite and sleep B.

The client scores lower on the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) or the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) C.

The client shows more interest and participation in social activities and hobbies D.

All of the above

The correct answer is A.

Adverse drug reactions.

Polypharmacy, which refers to the effects of taking multiple medications concurrently to manage coexisting health problems, is common among older adults.

It is defined as the regular use of at least five medications.

Polypharmacy can lead to an increase in geriatric syndromes, decrease in functional outcomes, and increased mortality.

One of the major risks of polypharmacy is adverse drug reactions, which are harmful or unintended effects of a medication that occur at normal doses.

Adverse drug reactions can result from drug-drug interactions, drug-disease interactions, drug-age interactions, or inappropriate prescribing.

Adverse drug reactions can cause symptoms such as confusion, dizziness, falls, bleeding, or organ damage.

They can also lead to hospitalizations, increased health care costs, and reduced quality of life.

Choice B is wrong because medication adherence, which is the extent to which patients take medications as prescribed by their health care providers, can actually decrease with polypharmacy.

This is because taking multiple medications can be complex, costly, and burdensome for older adults, especially if they have cognitive impairment or low health literacy.

Medication adherence can also be influenced by patients’ beliefs, preferences, and expectations about their medications.

Choice C is wrong because drug-drug interactions are not a risk of polypharmacy per se, but rather a cause of adverse drug reactions.

Drug-drug interactions occur when two or more drugs affect each other’s pharmacokinetics (absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion) or pharmacodynamics (mechanism of action, efficacy, toxicity).

Drug-drug interactions can alter the therapeutic effects or safety of a medication.

Choice D is wrong because therapeutic effects are the intended or desired effects of a medication that benefit the patient’s health condition.

Therapeutic effects can decrease with polypharmacy due to drug-drug interactions that reduce the efficacy of a medication.

Therapeutic effects can also be diminished by prescribing cascade, which is a phenomenon where a new medication is prescribed to treat a symptom that is actually an adverse drug reaction of another medication.

Normal ranges for blood pressure are.

≤120/80.

mmHg for normal,.

120−129/80.

mmHg for elevated,.

130−139/80−89.

mmHg for stage 1 hypertension, and.

≥140/90.

mmHg for stage 2 hypertension.