Question

A patient is taking a thiazide diuretic for hypertension and quinidine to treat a dysrhythmia. The prescriber orders digoxin 0.125 mg to improve this patient's cardiac output. The nurse should contact the provider to request:

a. adding spironolactone (Aldactone).
b. reducing the dose of digoxin.
c. discontinuing the quinidine.
d. giving potassium supplements.

Answer 1

The nurse should contact the provider to request potassium supplements to minimize the risk of digoxin toxicity.

Step-by-step explanation:

When a patient is taking a thiazide diuretic and quinidine, the addition of digoxin can increase the risk of digoxin toxicity. Thiazide diuretics can cause hypokalemia (low potassium levels), which can increase the cardiac toxicity of digoxin. Therefore, the nurse should contact the provider to request potassium supplements (option d) to maintain appropriate potassium levels and minimize the risk of digoxin toxicity.