Pediatric Nursing Final Exam Practice Questions 2026 |Answers
|Rationales
1. A nurse is assessing a 6-month-old infant. Which developmental milestone
should the nurse expect the infant to have achieved?
A. Walking while holding onto furniture
B. Rolling from back to abdomen
C. Sitting alone without support
D. Speaking two-word sentences
Answer: B
Rationale: By 6 months of age, infants typically can roll from back to abdomen. Sitting
alone usually occurs around 8 months, and walking with support occurs around 11-12
months.
2. Which of the following pain scales is most appropriate for a 3-year-old child?
A. Numerical Rating Scale (0-10)
B. CRIES scale
C. FACES scale
D. Visual Analog Scale
Answer: C
Rationale: The FACES pain scale is recommended for children as young as 3 years old
because it uses drawings of faces to help them communicate pain intensity.
,3. A child with suspected epiglottitis is brought to the emergency department.
Which action should the nurse avoid?
A. Providing humidified oxygen
B. Attempting to visualize the throat with a tongue depressor
C. Allowing the child to sit in a tripod position
D. Preparing for emergency intubation
Answer: B
Rationale: In a child with suspected epiglottitis, visualizing the throat with a tongue
depressor can trigger a laryngospasm and cause immediate airway obstruction.
4. The nurse is caring for an infant with pyloric stenosis. Which clinical
manifestation is most characteristic of this condition?
A. Currant jelly-like stools
B. Projectile vomiting after feeding
C. Chronic diarrhea
D. Abdominal distension and bile-stained emesis
Answer: B
Rationale: Hypertrophic pyloric stenosis typically presents with non-bilious projectile
vomiting immediately after feeding due to the narrowing of the pyloric sphincter.
5. A toddler is diagnosed with intussusception. The nurse should expect to
observe which type of stool?
A. Ribbon-like and foul-smelling
B. Clay-colored
C. Red, jelly-like (blood and mucus)
D. Loose and green
Answer: C
Rationale: Intussusception causes intestinal obstruction and ischemia, leading to stools
that contain blood and mucus, often described as ‘currant jelly’ stools.
, 6. What is the priority nursing intervention for a child experiencing a cyanotic
‘tet spell’ in Tetralogy of Fallot?
A. Administering oral digoxin
B. Placing the child in a knee-chest position
C. Starting a peripheral IV line
D. Encouraging the child to walk
Answer: B
Rationale: The knee-chest position increases systemic vascular resistance, which reduces
the right-to-left shunt and improves oxygenation during a hypercyanotic spell.
7. A child is admitted with a diagnosis of Hirschsprung disease. Which
assessment finding is most consistent with this diagnosis?
A. Ribbon-like, foul-smelling stools
B. Frequent watery diarrhea
C. Extreme hunger
D. Pain in the right lower quadrant
Answer: A
Rationale: Hirschsprung disease involves a lack of ganglion cells in the colon, leading to
chronic constipation and the passage of ribbon-like, foul-smelling stools.
8. A nurse is providing teaching to parents of a child with cystic fibrosis. What
should be included regarding pancreatic enzymes?
A. Enzymes should be administered within 30 minutes of every meal and snack
B. Give enzymes only if the child has a high-fat meal
C. Crush the enzyme beads and mix them with warm milk
D. Omit enzymes if the child is having a respiratory infection
Answer: A
Rationale: Pancreatic enzymes are required with every meal and snack to facilitate the
digestion and absorption of fats and proteins in children with cystic fibrosis.
|Rationales
1. A nurse is assessing a 6-month-old infant. Which developmental milestone
should the nurse expect the infant to have achieved?
A. Walking while holding onto furniture
B. Rolling from back to abdomen
C. Sitting alone without support
D. Speaking two-word sentences
Answer: B
Rationale: By 6 months of age, infants typically can roll from back to abdomen. Sitting
alone usually occurs around 8 months, and walking with support occurs around 11-12
months.
2. Which of the following pain scales is most appropriate for a 3-year-old child?
A. Numerical Rating Scale (0-10)
B. CRIES scale
C. FACES scale
D. Visual Analog Scale
Answer: C
Rationale: The FACES pain scale is recommended for children as young as 3 years old
because it uses drawings of faces to help them communicate pain intensity.
,3. A child with suspected epiglottitis is brought to the emergency department.
Which action should the nurse avoid?
A. Providing humidified oxygen
B. Attempting to visualize the throat with a tongue depressor
C. Allowing the child to sit in a tripod position
D. Preparing for emergency intubation
Answer: B
Rationale: In a child with suspected epiglottitis, visualizing the throat with a tongue
depressor can trigger a laryngospasm and cause immediate airway obstruction.
4. The nurse is caring for an infant with pyloric stenosis. Which clinical
manifestation is most characteristic of this condition?
A. Currant jelly-like stools
B. Projectile vomiting after feeding
C. Chronic diarrhea
D. Abdominal distension and bile-stained emesis
Answer: B
Rationale: Hypertrophic pyloric stenosis typically presents with non-bilious projectile
vomiting immediately after feeding due to the narrowing of the pyloric sphincter.
5. A toddler is diagnosed with intussusception. The nurse should expect to
observe which type of stool?
A. Ribbon-like and foul-smelling
B. Clay-colored
C. Red, jelly-like (blood and mucus)
D. Loose and green
Answer: C
Rationale: Intussusception causes intestinal obstruction and ischemia, leading to stools
that contain blood and mucus, often described as ‘currant jelly’ stools.
, 6. What is the priority nursing intervention for a child experiencing a cyanotic
‘tet spell’ in Tetralogy of Fallot?
A. Administering oral digoxin
B. Placing the child in a knee-chest position
C. Starting a peripheral IV line
D. Encouraging the child to walk
Answer: B
Rationale: The knee-chest position increases systemic vascular resistance, which reduces
the right-to-left shunt and improves oxygenation during a hypercyanotic spell.
7. A child is admitted with a diagnosis of Hirschsprung disease. Which
assessment finding is most consistent with this diagnosis?
A. Ribbon-like, foul-smelling stools
B. Frequent watery diarrhea
C. Extreme hunger
D. Pain in the right lower quadrant
Answer: A
Rationale: Hirschsprung disease involves a lack of ganglion cells in the colon, leading to
chronic constipation and the passage of ribbon-like, foul-smelling stools.
8. A nurse is providing teaching to parents of a child with cystic fibrosis. What
should be included regarding pancreatic enzymes?
A. Enzymes should be administered within 30 minutes of every meal and snack
B. Give enzymes only if the child has a high-fat meal
C. Crush the enzyme beads and mix them with warm milk
D. Omit enzymes if the child is having a respiratory infection
Answer: A
Rationale: Pancreatic enzymes are required with every meal and snack to facilitate the
digestion and absorption of fats and proteins in children with cystic fibrosis.
