Question

The nurse is providing postoperative care to a patient who underwent a transsphenoidal hypophysectomy for a benign pituitary tumor. The nurse administers replacement hydrocortisone, thyroid hormone, and vasopressin. The nurse evaluates that the vasopressin replacement is effective when:

a. the patient's blood glucose is 110 mg/dL.
b. the patient maintains a core body temperature of 98.2° F (36.8° C).
c. the patient's urine specific gravity decreases.
d. 2 liters of urine are produced in a 24-hour period.

Answer 1

The nurse can determine that vasopressin replacement is effective when the urine-specific gravity increases, which indicates that the body is conserving water appropriately.

Step-by-step explanation:

The nurse evaluates that the vasopressin replacement is effective when the patient's urine-specific gravity decreases. Vasopressin, also known as antidiuretic hormone (ADH), is responsible for regulating water balance in the body by increasing water reabsorption in the kidneys. By targeting the ducts in the kidneys, vasopressin makes them more permeable to water, allowing more water to be resorbed by the body, which leads to a concentration of the urine and a subsequent increase in urine specific gravity. Therefore, when vasopressin replacement is effective, it would result in a higher concentration of urine and a rise in urine-specific gravity, not a decrease. Thus, the correct interpretation of the effectiveness of vasopressin replacement should be an increase in urine-specific gravity rather than a decrease.