Question

A nurse is caring for a patient who has heart failure, and his telemetry reading displays a flattening of the T-wave. Which of the following lab results should the nurse anticipate as the cause of this ECG change?

A) Hyperkalemia
B) Hypokalemia
C) Hypercalcemia
D) Hyponatremia

Answer 1

The flattening of the T-wave on an ECG in a heart failure patient is likely due to hypokalemia, which is low potassium levels that affect heart depolarization and can lead to arrhythmias.

Step-by-step explanation:

A nurse caring for a patient with heart failure notes a flattening of the T-wave on the patient's telemetry reading. When considering electrolyte imbalances and their impact on the electrocardiogram (ECG), the nurse should anticipate hypokalemia, which refers to low potassium levels, as the cause of this ECG change.

This is because potassium plays a significant role in cardiac function, and an imbalance can affect depolarization and lead to various arrhythmias. Hypokalemia is known to cause arrhythmias and can manifest as changes in the ECG, including flattening of T-waves, which indicates insufficient myocardial repolarization.