Free BCEN Certified Emergency Nurse (CEN) Practice Question

The presentation is suggestive of acute decompensated heart failure with pulmonary edema. The administration of intravenous diuretics, such as furosemide, is a key initial treatment in managing fluid overload and reducing pulmonary congestion in this situation. Nitroglycerin may also be used to reduce preload and afterload but is not the initial medication of choice. Oxygen therapy alone will not address the fluid overload and is an adjunct treatment. Intravenous morphine is not the primary treatment for heart failure and is used cautiously, mainly for palliative care to ease dyspnea and anxiety in end-stage heart failure, not as an initial line of treatment.