The nurse notices the presence of periorbital edema when performing an eye assessment on a 70-year-old patient. What should the nurse do next?

A) Check for the presence of exophthalmos.
B) Suspect that the patient has hyperthyroidism.
C) Ask the patient if he or she has a history of heart failure.
D) Assess for blepharitis, which is often associated with periorbital edema.

Periorbital edema occurs with local infections, crying, and systemic conditions such as heart failure, renal failure, allergy, and hypothyroidism. Periorbital edema is not associated with blepharitis. Exophthalmos is associated with hyperthyroidism or thyrotoxicosis and hyperthyroidism is not associated with periorbital edema (although hypothyroidism is). Periorbital edema is not associated with blepharitis, either. Thus, the nurse should ask about these conditions.