Question

When screening patients at a community center, the nurse will plan to teach ways to reduce risk factors for osteoarthritis to a

a. 24-year-old man who participates in a summer softball team.
b. 36-year-old woman who is newly diagnosed with diabetes mellitus.
c. 49-year-old woman who works on an automotive assembly line.
d. 56-year-old man who is a member of a construction crew.

Answer 1

The nurse should teach a 49-year-old assembly line worker to maintain a healthy weight, engage in low-impact exercises, build muscle strength, and use proper body mechanics. These strategies are essential to reduce the risk of developing osteoarthritis.

Step-by-step explanation:

When screening patients for risk factors for osteoarthritis, the nurse should focus on teaching prevention strategies to a 49-year-old woman who works on an automotive assembly line. This patient's profession likely involves repetitive motions and could place her at higher risk for joint injury and osteoarthritis (OA), given the stress on her joints.

Key ways to reduce risk factors for OA include:

• Maintaining a normal, healthy weight to minimize stress on weight-bearing joints.
• Engaging in low-impact exercises like swimming or biking instead of high-impact activities that could cause joint injury.
• Building muscle strength to stabilize joints and spreading stress evenly through daily exercise routines.
• Using proper body mechanics to distribute work across larger, stronger joints and to prevent injury.

For the assembly line worker, ergonomic adjustments to her workplace and task variations could also be important aspects of reducing her OA risk.