Question

A nurse is assessing a client's spinal range of motion. Which of the following motions is the nurse assessing by asking the client to bend backward as far as they can go?

A) Flexion
B) Extension
C) Lateral Flexion
D) Rotation

Answer 1

The motion being assessed when a client bends backward is extension, which is a posterior-directed motion of the spine.

Step-by-step explanation:

When a nurse is assessing a client's spinal range of motion and asks the client to bend backward as far as they can go, they are assessing extension. Extension is a movement within the sagittal plane involving a posterior-directed motion, such as straightening from a flexed position or bending backward. Thus, the correct answer is B) Extension. Flexion, on the other hand, involves an anterior bending of the neck or body. Lateral flexion is the bending of the neck or body toward the right or left side, and rotation is the twisting movement produced between adjacent vertebrae.

As for the vertebral column, the cervical region has the greatest range of motion for rotation. Hence, the answer to the given reference question 49 is A) cervical.