Chapter 60: Nursing Management: Alzheimer's Disease, Dementia, and Delirium
Test Bank
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. A 68-year-old patient who is hospitalized with pneumonia is disoriented and confused 3 days

after admission. Which information indicates that the patient is experiencing delirium rather than dementia?
a. The patient was oriented and alert when admitted.
b. The patient’s speech is fragmented and incoherent.
c. The patient is oriented to person but disoriented to place and time.
d. The patient has a history of increasing confusion over several years.
ANS: A

The onset of delirium occurs acutely. The degree of disorientation does not differentiate between delirium and dementia. Increasing confusion for several years is consistent with …show more content…

Difficulty eating and swallowing is characteristic of severe dementia.
DIF: Cognitive Level: Understand (comprehension)
REF: 1453
TOP: Nursing Process: Assessment
MSC: NCLEX: Psychosocial Integrity
8. Which action will help the nurse determine whether a new patient’s confusion is caused by

dementia or delirium?
a. Administer the Mini-Mental Status Exam.
b. Use the Confusion Assessment Method tool.
c. Determine whether there is a family history of dementia.
d. Obtain a list of the medications that the patient usually takes.
ANS: B

The Confusion Assessment Method tool has been extensively tested in assessing delirium.
The other actions will be helpful in determining cognitive function or risk factors for dementia or delirium, but they will not be useful in differentiating between dementia and delirium.
DIF: Cognitive Level: Apply (application)
REF:
1459
TOP: Nursing Process: Assessment
MSC: NCLEX: Psychosocial Integrity
9. A 72-year-old female patient is brought to the clinic by the patient’s spouse, who reports that

she is unable to solve common problems around the house. To obtain information about the patient’s current mental status, which question should the nurse ask the patient?
a. “Are you sad?”
b. “How is your self-image?”
c. “Where were you were born?”
d. “What did you eat for breakfast?”
ANS: D

This question tests the patient’s short-term memory, which is decreased in the mild stage of
Alzheimer’s disease or dementia. Asking the