NR 305 Health Assessment Exam 7 Practice Questions 2026
|Chamberlain College
1. When assessing for tactile fremitus, the nurse should expect to find increased
vibrations in which condition?
A. Pleural effusion
B. Pneumothorax
C. Emphysema
D. Lobar pneumonia
Answer: D
Rationale: Tactile fremitus is increased with compression or consolidation of lung tissue,
such as in lobar pneumonia, because sound travels better through solid or dense medium
than through air or fluid.
2. Which heart sound is produced by the closure of the atrioventricular (AV)
valves?
A. S2
B. S1
C. S3
D. S4
Answer: B
Rationale: S1 occurs with closure of the AV valves (mitral and tricuspid) and signals the
beginning of systole.
,3. While performing a musculoskeletal assessment, the nurse asks the patient to
move their arm away from the midline of the body. This movement is called:
A. Abduction
B. Adduction
C. Flexion
D. Extension
Answer: A
Rationale: Abduction is moving a limb away from the midline of the body; adduction is
moving a limb toward the midline.
4. The nurse is assessing a patient’s abdomen and notes a loud, gurgling sound
occurring 20 times per minute. How should the nurse document this?
A. Hypoactive bowel sounds
B. Hyperactive bowel sounds
C. Borborygmus
D. Normal bowel sounds
Answer: D
Rationale: Normal bowel sounds are high-pitched, gurgling, cascading sounds, occurring
irregularly anywhere from 5 to 30 times per minute.
5. Which cranial nerve is being tested when the nurse asks the patient to shrug
their shoulders against resistance?
A. CN XI (Spinal Accessory)
B. CN X (Vagus)
C. CN VII (Facial)
D. CN XII (Hypoglossal)
Answer: A
Rationale: Cranial nerve XI is tested by checking the strength of the trapezius and
sternomastoid muscles by shrugging shoulders and turning the head against resistance.
, 6. During an eye exam, the nurse notes that the patient’s pupils constrict when
focusing on a near object after looking at a distant object. This is documented
as:
A. Accommodation
B. Direct light reflex
C. Consensual reflex
D. Nystagmus
Answer: A
Rationale: Accommodation is the adaptation of the eye for near vision, characterized by
pupillary constriction and convergence of the axes of the eyeballs.
7. To assess for jaundice in a dark-skinned patient, where is the best location for
the nurse to look?
A. The palms of the hands
B. The sclera and hard palate
C. The nail beds
D. The abdomen
Answer: B
Rationale: In dark-skinned individuals, jaundice is best observed in the sclera (specifically
near the limbus) and the hard palate of the mouth.
8. A nurse identifies a ‘thrill’ during a cardiovascular assessment. What does this
finding indicate?
A. A normal heart rhythm
B. An enlarged liver
C. Fluid in the pericardial sac
D. A palpable vibration signaling turbulent blood flow
Answer: D
|Chamberlain College
1. When assessing for tactile fremitus, the nurse should expect to find increased
vibrations in which condition?
A. Pleural effusion
B. Pneumothorax
C. Emphysema
D. Lobar pneumonia
Answer: D
Rationale: Tactile fremitus is increased with compression or consolidation of lung tissue,
such as in lobar pneumonia, because sound travels better through solid or dense medium
than through air or fluid.
2. Which heart sound is produced by the closure of the atrioventricular (AV)
valves?
A. S2
B. S1
C. S3
D. S4
Answer: B
Rationale: S1 occurs with closure of the AV valves (mitral and tricuspid) and signals the
beginning of systole.
,3. While performing a musculoskeletal assessment, the nurse asks the patient to
move their arm away from the midline of the body. This movement is called:
A. Abduction
B. Adduction
C. Flexion
D. Extension
Answer: A
Rationale: Abduction is moving a limb away from the midline of the body; adduction is
moving a limb toward the midline.
4. The nurse is assessing a patient’s abdomen and notes a loud, gurgling sound
occurring 20 times per minute. How should the nurse document this?
A. Hypoactive bowel sounds
B. Hyperactive bowel sounds
C. Borborygmus
D. Normal bowel sounds
Answer: D
Rationale: Normal bowel sounds are high-pitched, gurgling, cascading sounds, occurring
irregularly anywhere from 5 to 30 times per minute.
5. Which cranial nerve is being tested when the nurse asks the patient to shrug
their shoulders against resistance?
A. CN XI (Spinal Accessory)
B. CN X (Vagus)
C. CN VII (Facial)
D. CN XII (Hypoglossal)
Answer: A
Rationale: Cranial nerve XI is tested by checking the strength of the trapezius and
sternomastoid muscles by shrugging shoulders and turning the head against resistance.
, 6. During an eye exam, the nurse notes that the patient’s pupils constrict when
focusing on a near object after looking at a distant object. This is documented
as:
A. Accommodation
B. Direct light reflex
C. Consensual reflex
D. Nystagmus
Answer: A
Rationale: Accommodation is the adaptation of the eye for near vision, characterized by
pupillary constriction and convergence of the axes of the eyeballs.
7. To assess for jaundice in a dark-skinned patient, where is the best location for
the nurse to look?
A. The palms of the hands
B. The sclera and hard palate
C. The nail beds
D. The abdomen
Answer: B
Rationale: In dark-skinned individuals, jaundice is best observed in the sclera (specifically
near the limbus) and the hard palate of the mouth.
8. A nurse identifies a ‘thrill’ during a cardiovascular assessment. What does this
finding indicate?
A. A normal heart rhythm
B. An enlarged liver
C. Fluid in the pericardial sac
D. A palpable vibration signaling turbulent blood flow
Answer: D
