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Hey guys nurse mike here and welcome to simple nursing comm check out our brand new app get access to our new pharmacology and med search mastery courses plus the massive quiz bank loaded with detailed rationales to test your knowledge join for free click the link in our description below glucocorticoids aka are steroids the stress and swelling hormone guys they’re
Used for anti-inflammatory effects ending in zone like prednisone dexamethasone hydrocortisone and fludrocortisone guys these are given to help the body respond to inflammation and stress commonly prescribed for inflamed lungs like copd inflamed joints like rheumatoid arthritis inflamed skin like psoriasis and even inflamed body like lou pez where the body attacks
Itself and also allergic reactions where everything swells up sounds friendly enough right well wrong guy steroids come with a laundry list of both side effects and patient teaching which comes up a lot on the nclex as well as hesse and ati exit exams so let’s review this from our endocrine series so here are the top seven most tested steroid side-effects and
Nursing considerations now i can guarantee you at least three or four will be on your exam so remember the seven s’s of steroids ending in zone like prednisone s for swollen steroids swell the body’s so weight gain means water gain we see a big moon face with big blood pressure big key words here sudden excessive or rapid weight gain teach patients to report one
Pound in one day or even two to three pounds in a few days s for sepsis or infection from low wbc’s guys this leads to slow wound healing which is a huge risk for a fever and infection always priority on the nclex any low-grade fever even a hundred or thirty seven point eight degrees celsius can be very serious now sugar will be increased hyperglycemia over 115
So guys for diabetics on steroids steroids increase the sugar so we increased the insulin write that one down big keyword for the nclex now skinny muscles and bones or osteoporosis big risk for fractures and sites specifically risk for cataracts so we’re referring these patients to optometrist and other nclex tip guys everyone always misses that one on statins
And lastly to prevent an estonian crisis we always teach patients to slowly taper off never an abrupt stop and again for stress and surgery we always increase the dose with increased stress write that one down i saw that one like three times on the nclex review now three common nclex questions from our 10,000 question review the nurse should be concerned when
The client states i have a sore on my leg that won’t go away which medication should be reviewed by the hcp select all that apply guys it’s a very common test question so remember steroids suppress the immune system causing slow wound healing so we’re looking for zone ending steroids so option number one naproxen now guys this is an nsaid not a steroid option
Number two die hydromorphone own nope this one’s really tricky since this is a pain med the brand name is dilaudid it ends in one but not zone how about dexamethasone yes guys it’s a zone ending steroid so that is our correct option there how about hydrocodone no guys again this is a very tricky distractor which nclex loves to trick you guys so this is an opioid
Painkiller ending in own or one and not zone and it sounds very similar to hydrocortisone our last option now another question which priority teaching is required for a patient prescribed prednisone for lupus option number one report slight increases in blood pressure to hcp immediately now guys increases in sugar with steroids are normal key word here is slight
Increase so there’s no need to report how about option number two increase the dose before surgery or during times of stress well guys yes this is priority stress can kill so we increase the steroids during the stress like surgery how about option number three we monitor weight weekly well guys now guys we’re monitoring weight daily this is the most important
Value to monitor and remember steroids swell the body so when he weight gain usually means water gain we’re reporting key words like new rapid or unusual weight gain now option number four take with the full meal at breakfast yes guys this is true no extra teaching is needed but with morning and meals and it’s not a priority now the last question which of the
Following is an indication that the client needs additional teaching while taking fludrocortisone so option number one i will not discontinue this medication abruptly yes guys this is true we never stop steroids suddenly or abruptly we always decrease or increase the dose gradually now the key word here is taper on and off steroids slowly always remember that
Now option number two new bilateral pedal edema is normal no guys this is not normal key word here is new the new edema now this should be and needs to be reported to the hcp now option number three the most important value to monitor is my weight yes guys again and again weight gain usually means water game so we’re reporting new rapid weight gain immediately and
Lastly option number four i will report signs and symptoms of infection yes guys steroids suppress the immune system which increases the risk for sepsis or basically infection all right guys that wraps it up for steroids don’t forget to take your quiz in the quiz bank area thanks for watching for our full video & new quiz bank click right up here to access your
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Transcribed from video
Pharmacology l Steroids – Prednisone – nursing RN PN (MADE EASY) By Simple Nursing
