2024 PN NCLEX Questions Nursing Practice Question
While assisting with data collection, the nurse asks the client to close their jaws tightly. Subsequently, the nurse tries to open the closed jaws. In this technique, the nurse is assessing the motor function of which nerve?
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: The technique described involves assessing the motor function of the muscles used for chewing, which are innervated by the trigeminal nerve (C). This nerve controls the muscles of mastication, allowing the nurse to evaluate jaw strength by attempting to open the client's tightly closed jaws.
Option A, the trochlear nerve, primarily innervates the superior oblique muscle of the eye, affecting eye movement, not jaw function. Option B, the abducens nerve, controls lateral eye movement and is unrelated to jaw movement. Option D, the oculomotor nerve, is involved in eye movement and pupil constriction, not in mastication. Thus, only the trigeminal nerve is relevant to the assessment described.