As long as the patient has an Aldrete score from 8-10, the patient may be discharged.

• A. Discharge
• B. Monitor the patient
• C. Continue observation
• D. Return to operating room

Answer: (A)

The Aldrete score measures when a patient has recovered enough from anesthesia to go home from the recovery area. It looks at five areas—activity, respiration, circulation, consciousness, and oxygen saturation—each scored 0 to 2 for a total of 0 to 10. Reaching a score in the 8–10 range means the patient has enough motor recovery, stable breathing and heart function, and is awake with adequate oxygenation to be discharged, assuming there are no other issues like uncontrolled pain or nausea. While many settings use 9–10 as the usual discharge threshold, some protocols allow 8–10, especially for uncomplicated outpatient cases. If the score drops below 8, continued monitoring or treatment is indicated.