Which option is NOT a nursing consideration for a child with impetigo?

Which option is NOT a nursing consideration for a child with impetigo?

• A. Carefully wash hands before and after contact with the child
• B. Keep nails trimmed short
• C. Apply topical corticosteroids to decrease inflammation
• D. Use shared towels with other patients

Answer: (C)

Care focuses on stopping spread and treating the infection with appropriate antibiotics and hygiene. Impetigo is highly contagious, so preventing transmission is a primary nursing goal. Hand hygiene before and after contacting the child breaks the chain of infection. Keeping nails trimmed short reduces scratching and potential autoinoculation to other skin areas. Using separate towels and laundering linens and clothing separately prevents spreading the lesions to others. Topical corticosteroids to decrease inflammation are not used to treat impetigo. They can suppress the local immune response and mask symptoms, which may allow the bacterial infection to worsen or spread. The appropriate management relies on antibiotic therapy (topical or oral) and proper cleansing, not steroids.

Care focuses on stopping spread and treating the infection with appropriate antibiotics and hygiene. Impetigo is highly contagious, so preventing transmission is a primary nursing goal. Hand hygiene before and after contacting the child breaks the chain of infection. Keeping nails trimmed short reduces scratching and potential autoinoculation to other skin areas. Using separate towels and laundering linens and clothing separately prevents spreading the lesions to others.

Topical corticosteroids to decrease inflammation are not used to treat impetigo. They can suppress the local immune response and mask symptoms, which may allow the bacterial infection to worsen or spread. The appropriate management relies on antibiotic therapy (topical or oral) and proper cleansing, not steroids.