A 26-year-old unrestrained woman struck her chest on the steering wheel when her car collided with another vehicle. After performing your primary assessment and administering high-flow oxygen, you assess her chest and note a segment of obviously fractured ribs that bulges outward during exhalation. You should:

Hello. You forgot to add the answer options. The options are:

"A) increase intrathoracic pressure with a demand valve.  B) apply a bulky dressing to the segment of fractured ribs.  C) position her on her injured side and monitor her breathing.  D) apply pressure to the segment of ribs as the patient inhales."

B) apply a bulky dressing to the segment of fractured ribs.

Explanation:

Fractured ribs can cause severe pain, difficulty breathing and can even pierce an organ, such as the lung. However, surgery is not necessary to repair the fracture of the ribs, the body itself will be in charge of resolving these fractures.

While the body does not "repair" the fractured ribs, the ideal is for the person with fractured ribs to seek medical attention. At that moment, when the nurse perceives the fractures, that nurse must apply a bulky dressing on the fractured rib segment (to limit movement), prescribe some medication to relieve pain and recommend an absolute repair until the organism repairs the injury.