High School

To prevent complications from excessive blood draws, the hospital policy limits the amount of blood that can be drawn to 5% of a patient's total blood volume in a 30-day period. A 100-year-old female patient in the intensive care unit recently suffered a stroke. The medical record indicates that this patient weighs 99.3 lbs. Which of the following is true about the volume requirements for high-risk patients?

A) High-risk patients have no volume restrictions.
B) High-risk patients have a lower volume limit due to their age.
C) The volume requirement for high-risk patients is determined solely by their weight.
D) High-risk patients have a higher volume limit due to their medical condition.

Answer :

Final answer:

The volume requirement for high-risk patients regarding blood draws is determined solely by their weight. This is to ensure that the limits set by the hospital policy to prevent complications such as hypovolemia are adhered to, with patients typically having 8% of their body weight in blood volume.

Explanation:

To address the question about the volume requirements for high-risk patients in a hospital setting regarding blood draws, we need to consider the hospital policy that limits the amount of blood drawn to 5% of a patient's total blood volume in a 30-day period. This limit is set to prevent complications from excessive blood draws, such as hypovolemia, which can lead to symptoms like low blood pressure and circulatory shock.

As for the true statement regarding the volume requirements for high-risk patients, Letter C is the correct answer: The volume requirement for high-risk patients is determined solely by their weight. Blood constitutes approximately 8 percent of adult body weight, with adult males typically having about 5 to 6 liters of blood and females having 4 to 5 liters. Therefore, the amount of blood that can be drawn is affected by the patient's weight, and in this scenario, the patient's weight must be considered when determining the maximal allowable blood draw over a 30-day period.

It is not the case that high-risk patients have no volume restrictions (A) or that they necessarily have a lower (B) or higher (D) volume limit due to their age or medical condition respectively; rather, it is their total blood volume—closely related to their body weight—that guides these decisions.