The nurse is assisting with tonometry on a patient at the ophthalmologist's office. The results indicate the patient's reading to be 17 mm Hg. The nurse interprets this result as IOP.

a) Decreasing viscosity of the tears and allowing fluid to drain away from the eye: This is incorrect. Osmotic agents do not act by affecting the viscosity of tears or enhancing drainage.
b) Increasing plasma osmolarity and drawing extracellular fluid into the blood: Osmotic agents, like mannitol, work by increasing plasma osmolarity, which draws excess fluid from the eye into the bloodstream, thereby lowering intraocular pressure.
c) Blocking production of aqueous humor: This is incorrect. Blocking production of aqueous humor is the mechanism of action of medications like beta-blockers (e.g., timolol), not osmotic agents.
d) Promoting outflow of the aqueous humor into the tear ducts: This is incorrect. Promoting outflow of aqueous humor is the mechanism of action for other medications, such as prostaglandin analogs, not osmotic agents.

a) "Cochlear implants cannot enable you to discriminate speech." Cochlear implants improve the ability to hear and discriminate speech, especially in individuals with severe to profound hearing loss. The statement is inaccurate.
b) "Complications of cochlear implant are often disabling." While cochlear implants may have risks such as infection or device failure, these complications are typically not disabling and can often be addressed with medical intervention.
c) "Results vary from minimal to excellent improvement in hearing." The effectiveness of cochlear implants varies from patient to patient. Some individuals experience significant improvement in hearing and speech discrimination, while others may have minimal benefits, depending on factors such as age, duration of deafness, and overall health.
d) "This procedure restores perfect hearing in 99% of patients." Cochlear implants do not restore perfect hearing. While they can significantly improve hearing in many cases, the degree of improvement varies, and not all patients achieve perfect hearing.