Question
Read the passage and answer the question.
What would be cause for concern for an elderly patient regarding weight loss?
YOUR ELDERLY PATIENT NEEDS SPECIAL ATTENTION
NURSING HISTORY
To determine whether your patient was eating properly before admission,
your interview should evaluate dental status, living conditions and drug
history.
QUESTIONS WORTH ASKING:
Do poor-fitting dentures make it hard for you to chew? Do you frequently
misplace them? Is there someone at home who can cook for you? Do
arthritic pains or other health problems make it hard to prepare meals, use
a knife or other eating utensils or walk from the refrigerator to the kitchen
table? How far is it to the nearest grocery store? Do you get there
regularly or have someone who shops for you?
Also inquire about a history of stroke or any neurological diseases that may
cause difficulty swallowing. Ask whether the patient has noticed a decline in
the senses of taste and smell and whether he has any respiratory problems.
Chronic dyspnea, for example, can make it hard to eat.
Drug-induced nutritional deficiencies are a real possibility, because so many
elderly people use multiple medications on a long-term basis. Some agents
reduce the amount of food taken in by causing anorexia and nausea; other
agents deplete nutrient stores by triggering diarrhea or frequent urination.
Don't forget to ask patients about recent weight loss. Although there's a
controversy as to how much a normal elderly person should weigh, a weight
loss of 2% in a week, 5% in a month or 7.5% over three months is reason
enough for concern.
The patient's diet history, which should be available from the dietitian, can
give you an idea of whether he or she is taking in enough protein,
calories and those nutrients needed in minute amounts. Of course, even
someone who is eating normally can suffer from malnutrition if he's not
absorbing or metabolizing food properly. To determine if the patient is
utilizing what he eats you'll need to do a physical assessment.
a weight loss of 2% in a month
a weight loss of 5% in a month
a weight loss of 7.5% in a year
a weight loss of 7.5% in six months
What would be cause for concern for an elderly patient regarding weight loss?
YOUR ELDERLY PATIENT NEEDS SPECIAL ATTENTION
NURSING HISTORY
To determine whether your patient was eating properly before admission,
your interview should evaluate dental status, living conditions and drug
history.
QUESTIONS WORTH ASKING:
Do poor-fitting dentures make it hard for you to chew? Do you frequently
misplace them? Is there someone at home who can cook for you? Do
arthritic pains or other health problems make it hard to prepare meals, use
a knife or other eating utensils or walk from the refrigerator to the kitchen
table? How far is it to the nearest grocery store? Do you get there
regularly or have someone who shops for you?
Also inquire about a history of stroke or any neurological diseases that may
cause difficulty swallowing. Ask whether the patient has noticed a decline in
the senses of taste and smell and whether he has any respiratory problems.
Chronic dyspnea, for example, can make it hard to eat.
Drug-induced nutritional deficiencies are a real possibility, because so many
elderly people use multiple medications on a long-term basis. Some agents
reduce the amount of food taken in by causing anorexia and nausea; other
agents deplete nutrient stores by triggering diarrhea or frequent urination.
Don't forget to ask patients about recent weight loss. Although there's a
controversy as to how much a normal elderly person should weigh, a weight
loss of 2% in a week, 5% in a month or 7.5% over three months is reason
enough for concern.
The patient's diet history, which should be available from the dietitian, can
give you an idea of whether he or she is taking in enough protein,
calories and those nutrients needed in minute amounts. Of course, even
someone who is eating normally can suffer from malnutrition if he's not
absorbing or metabolizing food properly. To determine if the patient is
utilizing what he eats you'll need to do a physical assessment.
a weight loss of 2% in a month
a weight loss of 5% in a month
a weight loss of 7.5% in a year
a weight loss of 7.5% in six months
Answers
GPT-4o mini
The passage indicates that a weight loss of 2% in a week, 5% in a month, or 7.5% over three months is a cause for concern for an elderly patient. Therefore, out of the options provided, the answer that would be a cause for concern regarding weight loss in an elderly patient is:
**a weight loss of 5% in a month.**
**a weight loss of 5% in a month.**