NCLEX Question of the Day

Question

A Client is scheduled to have an a transesophageal echocardiogram (TEE). Which of the following is an incorrect understanding by the client about the procedure?

A. The test will show the function of the heart valves.

B. I cannot eat or drink after midnight.

C. The test will use gel on your chest over the heart.

D. I will have sedation for the procedure.

Answer 1

Whenever you answer any type of medical/nursing question, you need to understand what the question is asking. The patient in this question stem is having a transesophageal echocardiogram (TEE). Breaking down this word, the patient is having an "across" "esophagus" "sound" "heart" "within". We are going to measure the measure the sound within the heart from across the esophagus.

To understand this question, you must understand some basic anatomy. The esophagus is a retroperitoneal organ and travels on the posterior or back side of the body. The heart in contrast is in the pericardial cavity in the anterior of the chest.

Question answer A -- Incorrect

You are measuring the function of the heart valves.

Question answer B -- Incorrect

Technically this could be the correct answer depending on the context. While you cannot eat or drink 6 hours prior to having a TEE procedure, because of question answer C being totally false, this answer is incorrect. 12 midnight and likely having a procedure in the morning is "basically" correct.

Question answer C -- ****This is the "best" answer choice.

Because you are looking for the incorrect understanding, you are looking for the answer choice which is false. In a TEE, you are checking for the heart sound from the posterior surface of the heart instead of the anterior surface. Even if you did not know that this is done through a esophageal catheter, you should still know just by the wording in the procedure itself that this is not performed by using gel over the chest. Gel over the chest is the part of the Trans Thoracic Echocardiogram,"across breastplate sound heart within" "TTE" procedure.

Question answer D -- Incorrect

Because you are inserting a catheter down the esophagus to measure the heart sounds, you will need be relaxed. You will need some type of sedation to shove a catheter down your throat.