Question

The nurse receives an order to give an intramuscular (IM) injection to a frail elderly patient weighing 98 lbs. and chooses a needle that is 21 gauge and 2 inches long. This patient may experience a complication related to the nurse's choice of needle because the:

A. medication will be deposited directly into a vein or artery.

B. medication will be deposited into the incorrect tissue.

C. needle may cause injury to nearby nerves.

D. patient will experience excessive pain.

Answer 1

Answer

C. needle may cause injury to near by nerves.

Because

Women weighing more than 200 lbs (90 kg) or men weighing more than 260 lbs (118 kg)Use of a 1½" needle is recommended.

The selection of needle length is also crucial. The needle should be long enough to reach the muscle mass and to prevent subcutaneous injection, but not so long to involve underlying nerves, blood vessels, or bones. Appropriate needle length in adults depends on patient’s sex and weight ,here patient body weight 98lbs and used syringe 21 gauge and 2inches long

Commonly used needle length is usually 1"–1½", 22–25 gauge, but here used a longer needle with small below recommended gauge it may cause possible nerve injury.