A patient has a normal cardiac rhythm and a heart rate of 72 beats/minute. The nurse determines that ...

A patient has a normal cardiac rhythm and a heart rate of 72 beats/minute. The nurse determines that the P-R interval is 0.24 seconds. The most appropriate intervention by the nurse would be to
 
  a. notify the health care provider immediately.
  b. give atropine per agency dysrhythmia protocol.
  c. prepare the patient for temporary pacemaker insertion.
  d. document the finding and continue to monitor the patient.

Question 2

The nurse notes that a patient's cardiac monitor shows that every other beat is earlier than expected, has no visible P wave, and has a QRS complex that is wide and bizarre in shape. How will the nurse document the rhythm?
 
  a. Ventricular couplets
  b. Ventricular bigeminy
  c. Ventricular R-on-T phenomenon
  d. Multifocal premature ventricular contractions

Question 3

The nurse obtains a rhythm strip on a patient who has had a myocardial infarction and makes the following analysis:
 
  no visible P waves, P-R interval not measurable, ventricular rate 162, R-R interval regular, and QRS complex wide and distorted, QRS duration 0.18 second. The nurse interprets the patient's cardiac rhythm as
  a. atrial flutter.
  b. sinus tachycardia.
  c. ventricular fibrillation.
  d. ventricular tachycardia.

Question 4

A patient has a junctional escape rhythm on the monitor. The nurse will expect the patient to have a heart rate of _____ beats/minute.
 
  a. 15 to 20
  b. 20 to 40
  c. 40 to 60
  d. 60 to 100