Maternity Nursing Q 165
When caring for a 3-day-old neonate who is receiving phototherapy to treat jaundice, the nurse in charge would expect to do which of the following?
A. Turn the neonate every 6 hours
B. Encourage the mother to discontinue breastfeeding.
C. Notify the physician if the skin becomes bronze in color.
D. Check the vital signs every 2 to 4 hours.
Correct Answer: D. Check the vital signs every 2 to 4 hours
While caring for an infant receiving phototherapy for treatment of jaundice, vital signs are checked every 2 to 4 hours because hyperthermia can occur due to the phototherapy lights.
Option A: Only one study reported the significance drop in serum bilirubin and shorter duration of phototherapy in the supine group. Keeping the jaundiced newborn in the supine position throughout phototherapy is as effective as turning them periodically based on appraised studies.
Option B: The baby may be breastfed without interruption during phototherapy. Jaundice in breastfed babies is not a reason to stop breastfeeding as long as a baby is feeding well, gaining weight, and otherwise growing.
Option C: Bronze baby syndrome is a rare complication seen in neonates with hyperbilirubinemia who are being treated with phototherapy. Affected neonates develop gray-brown skin, serum, and urine within a week of initiation of phototherapy.