Question

During your assessment of a 50-year-old male found unconscious in an alley, you note slow, shallow respirations, significant bradycardia, facial cyanosis, and pinpoint pupils. As your partner assesses the patient's ventilations, he directs your attention to the patient's arms, which have multiple needle tracts. The patient's clinical presentation is most consistent with:

A) Hypoglycemia
B) Opioid overdose
C) Hyperglycemia
D) Alcohol intoxication

Answer 1

The patient's symptoms suggest opioid overdose, given the respiratory and nervous system depression signs. Opioid toxicity requires urgent medical treatment.

Step-by-step explanation:

The patient's clinical presentation, including slow, shallow respirations, significant bradycardia, facial cyanosis, and pinpoint pupils, along with the observation of multiple needle tracts on the arms, is most consistent with B) Opioid overdose.

These symptoms are indicative of the respiratory and central nervous system depression that commonly occurs with opioid toxicity.

Opioid overdose can lead to life-threatening hypoventilation, which causes hypoxemia and hypercapnia, and necessitates immediate medical attention, often including the administration of naloxone, a medication that can rapidly reverse the effects of opioids.