West Coast EMT Block 2 Exam
Study Questions with Answers
(Guarantee Pass)
1. You are attending to a 27-year-old male driver of a car. According to his
passenger, the patient had been acting strangely while driving, then slumped
forward against the steering wheel, apparently unconscious. The car drove
off the road and struck a telephone pole. The patient remains unconscious,
and physical assessment reveals only a large hematoma on his right forehead
with no other physical signs. Your patient is a diabetic who had been under a
lot of stress lately and may have missed meals. This is an example of a:
Select one:
A. combination of a psychiatric and trauma emergency.
B. medical emergency.
C. trauma emergency.
D. combination of a medical and trauma emergency. - ANSWER D.
combination of a medical and trauma emergency.
2. "PASTE" is an alternate assessment tool for ___________.
Select one:
A. respiratory patients
B. seizure patients
C. stroke patients
D. cardiac patients - ANSWER A. respiratory patients
3. A 30-year-old male presents with acute shortness of breath, widespread
hives, and facial swelling. He denies any past medical history and takes no
medications. During your assessment, you hear wheezing over all the lung
fields. His blood pressure is 90/50 mm Hg and his heart rate is 110
, beats/min. In addition to giving him high-flow oxygen, the MOST important
treatment for this patient is:
Select one:
A. epinephrine.
B. a beta-antagonist.
C. albuterol.
D. an antihistamine. - ANSWER A. epinephrine.
4. A 59-year-old male with a history of emphysema complains of an acute
worsening of his dyspnea and pleuritic chest pain following a forceful
cough. Your assessment reveals that he has a barrel-shaped chest,
unilaterally diminished breath sounds, and tachycardia. What is the MOST
likely cause of this patient's condition?
Select one:
A. Spontaneous pneumothorax
B. Exacerbation of his COPD
C. Acute pulmonary embolism
D. Rupture of the diaphragm - ANSWER A. Spontaneous pneumothorax
5. A pleural effusion is MOST accurately defined as:
Select one:
A. fluid accumulation outside the lung.
B. diffuse collapsing of the alveoli.
C. a unilaterally collapsed lung.
D. a bacterial infection of the lung tissue. - ANSWER A. fluid
accumulation outside the lung.
6. Asthma is caused by a response of the:
Select one:
A. immune system.
, B. cardiovascular system.
C. endocrine system.
D. respiratory system. - ANSWER A. immune system.
7. Crackles (rales) are caused by _________.
Select one:
A. severe bronchoconstriction
B. mucus in the larger airways
C. narrowing of the upper airways
D. air passing through fluid - ANSWER D. air passing through fluid
8. Drowning is MOST accurately defined as:
Select one:
A. water in the lungs following submersion in water.
B. death beyond 24 hours after submersion in water.
C. temporary survival after submersion in water.
D. death from suffocation after submersion in water. - ANSWER D.
death from suffocation after submersion in water.
9. Hypothermia occurs when the core body temperature falls below:
Select one:
A. 88°F (31°C).
B. 98°F (37°C).
C. 95°F (35°C).
D. 90°F (32°C). - ANSWER C. 95°F (35°C).
10.In contrast to Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever:
Select one:
A. causes painful joint swelling after a few days or weeks.
, B. may be confused with rheumatoid arthritis.
C. presents with flu-like symptoms and a bull's-eye rash. - ANSWER B.
can cause paralysis and cardiorespiratory collapse.
11.Most of the serious injuries associated with scuba diving are caused by:
Select one:
A. alcohol consumption.
B. cold water temperature.
C. too rapid of an ascent.
D. too rapid of a descent. - ANSWER C. too rapid of an ascent.
12.The body's natural cooling mechanism, in which sweat is converted to a gas,
is called:
Select one:
A. convection.
B. radiation.
C. evaporation.
D. conduction. - ANSWER C. evaporation.
13.The EMT must assume that any unwitnessed water-related incident is
accompanied by:
Select one:
A. cold-water immersion.
B. an air embolism.
C. alcohol intoxication.
D. possible spinal injury. - ANSWER D. possible spinal injury.
14.The MOST prominent symptom of decompression sickness is:
Select one:
Study Questions with Answers
(Guarantee Pass)
1. You are attending to a 27-year-old male driver of a car. According to his
passenger, the patient had been acting strangely while driving, then slumped
forward against the steering wheel, apparently unconscious. The car drove
off the road and struck a telephone pole. The patient remains unconscious,
and physical assessment reveals only a large hematoma on his right forehead
with no other physical signs. Your patient is a diabetic who had been under a
lot of stress lately and may have missed meals. This is an example of a:
Select one:
A. combination of a psychiatric and trauma emergency.
B. medical emergency.
C. trauma emergency.
D. combination of a medical and trauma emergency. - ANSWER D.
combination of a medical and trauma emergency.
2. "PASTE" is an alternate assessment tool for ___________.
Select one:
A. respiratory patients
B. seizure patients
C. stroke patients
D. cardiac patients - ANSWER A. respiratory patients
3. A 30-year-old male presents with acute shortness of breath, widespread
hives, and facial swelling. He denies any past medical history and takes no
medications. During your assessment, you hear wheezing over all the lung
fields. His blood pressure is 90/50 mm Hg and his heart rate is 110
, beats/min. In addition to giving him high-flow oxygen, the MOST important
treatment for this patient is:
Select one:
A. epinephrine.
B. a beta-antagonist.
C. albuterol.
D. an antihistamine. - ANSWER A. epinephrine.
4. A 59-year-old male with a history of emphysema complains of an acute
worsening of his dyspnea and pleuritic chest pain following a forceful
cough. Your assessment reveals that he has a barrel-shaped chest,
unilaterally diminished breath sounds, and tachycardia. What is the MOST
likely cause of this patient's condition?
Select one:
A. Spontaneous pneumothorax
B. Exacerbation of his COPD
C. Acute pulmonary embolism
D. Rupture of the diaphragm - ANSWER A. Spontaneous pneumothorax
5. A pleural effusion is MOST accurately defined as:
Select one:
A. fluid accumulation outside the lung.
B. diffuse collapsing of the alveoli.
C. a unilaterally collapsed lung.
D. a bacterial infection of the lung tissue. - ANSWER A. fluid
accumulation outside the lung.
6. Asthma is caused by a response of the:
Select one:
A. immune system.
, B. cardiovascular system.
C. endocrine system.
D. respiratory system. - ANSWER A. immune system.
7. Crackles (rales) are caused by _________.
Select one:
A. severe bronchoconstriction
B. mucus in the larger airways
C. narrowing of the upper airways
D. air passing through fluid - ANSWER D. air passing through fluid
8. Drowning is MOST accurately defined as:
Select one:
A. water in the lungs following submersion in water.
B. death beyond 24 hours after submersion in water.
C. temporary survival after submersion in water.
D. death from suffocation after submersion in water. - ANSWER D.
death from suffocation after submersion in water.
9. Hypothermia occurs when the core body temperature falls below:
Select one:
A. 88°F (31°C).
B. 98°F (37°C).
C. 95°F (35°C).
D. 90°F (32°C). - ANSWER C. 95°F (35°C).
10.In contrast to Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever:
Select one:
A. causes painful joint swelling after a few days or weeks.
, B. may be confused with rheumatoid arthritis.
C. presents with flu-like symptoms and a bull's-eye rash. - ANSWER B.
can cause paralysis and cardiorespiratory collapse.
11.Most of the serious injuries associated with scuba diving are caused by:
Select one:
A. alcohol consumption.
B. cold water temperature.
C. too rapid of an ascent.
D. too rapid of a descent. - ANSWER C. too rapid of an ascent.
12.The body's natural cooling mechanism, in which sweat is converted to a gas,
is called:
Select one:
A. convection.
B. radiation.
C. evaporation.
D. conduction. - ANSWER C. evaporation.
13.The EMT must assume that any unwitnessed water-related incident is
accompanied by:
Select one:
A. cold-water immersion.
B. an air embolism.
C. alcohol intoxication.
D. possible spinal injury. - ANSWER D. possible spinal injury.
14.The MOST prominent symptom of decompression sickness is:
Select one:
