NCLEX Flashcards
7 cards from real IBD practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 NCLEX flashcards as text
A client with ulcerative colitis develops a painful, raised, violaceous skin lesion on the lower leg that has necrotic edges. The nurse documents this extraintestinal manifestation as:
Answer: Pyoderma gangrenosum
Pyoderma gangrenosum presents as a painful ulcerating skin lesion with violaceous, undermined edges and is a classic extraintestinal manifestation of IBD.
A client with IBD is being discharged on 6-mercaptopurine (6-MP). The nurse emphasizes that therapeutic effect typically takes how long?
Answer: 3–6 months
Thiopurines like 6-MP have a delayed onset of action of 3–6 months, so corticosteroids are often used as a bridge therapy during this period.
A nurse caring for a client with IBD notes the client is jaundiced with elevated alkaline phosphatase and a beaded biliary tree on MRCP. The nurse recognizes this as which IBD-associated hepatobiliary complication?
Answer: Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC)
Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) causes multifocal bile duct strictures producing a beaded appearance on MRCP and is strongly associated with ulcerative colitis.
A client with a newly created ileostomy reports that the output is green and liquid. The nurse should tell the client:
Answer: This is normal ileostomy output that may become more formed over time
Green, liquid output is normal immediately after ileostomy creation as the small bowel adapts; output typically becomes more yellow and paste-like over weeks.
A nurse is assessing a client with Crohn's disease for signs of short bowel syndrome following extensive resection. Which complication is the nurse most likely to find?
Answer: Chronic diarrhea with malabsorption and weight loss
Extensive small bowel resection reduces absorptive surface area, causing chronic diarrhea, malabsorption of macronutrients and micronutrients, and progressive weight loss.
A client with ulcerative colitis asks whether their disease can spread to the small intestine like Crohn's disease. The nurse's most accurate response is:
Answer: No, UC is limited to the colon and rectum, though backwash ileitis can occur
Ulcerative colitis involves the colon and rectum in a continuous pattern; in pancolitis, 'backwash ileitis' from reflux into the terminal ileum may occur but is not true small bowel involvement.
A client with Crohn's disease is prescribed vedolizumab (Entyvio). The nurse explains that this biologic differs from anti-TNF agents because it:
Answer: Acts selectively on the gut by blocking leukocyte migration into the intestinal mucosa
Vedolizumab is a gut-selective integrin antagonist that blocks α4β7 integrin, preventing T-lymphocyte trafficking specifically into intestinal tissue without broad systemic immunosuppression.