JBL EMT Practice Exam

Shortly after assisting a 65-year-old female with her prescribed nitroglycerin, she begins complaining of dizziness and experiences a drop of 30 mm Hg in her systolic blood pressure. The patient remains conscious and her breathing is adequate. You should:

1. assist ventilations with a bag-valve mask

2. place her in a supine position

3. transport her in a sitting position

4. wait 5 minutes and reassess her blood pressure

The correct answer is: assist ventilations with a bag-valve mask

After a patient takes nitroglycerin, a drop in blood pressure can occur due to the vasodilation effect of the medication. In this scenario, the patient is conscious and breathing adequately, which indicates that her airway is not compromised. By experiencing dizziness and a significant drop in systolic blood pressure, it suggests that the patient is hypotensive. The appropriate action in this situation is to assist ventilations with a bag-valve mask. Providing assisted ventilations can help improve oxygenation and perfusion, which is crucial in a hypotensive state. Placing the patient in a supine position may worsen the hypotension, transporting her in a sitting position could further compromise her condition, and waiting without intervening could lead to a deterioration of her situation. Therefore, the best course of action is to assist ventilations with a bag-valve mask to support her respiratory effort and possibly improve her blood pressure.