MLT Practice Exam UPDATED ACTUAL
QUESTIONS AND CORRECT ANSWERS
To correctly report a colony count in a urine culture plated using a calibrated 0.001 ml loop, the
observed colony count must be multiplied by which of the following?
A. 1
B. 100
C. 1000
D. 2000 - CORRECT ANSWER c. 1000
Examination of peripheral blood smear revealed 12 nucleated erythrocytes per 100 leukocytes. Which
histogram observation correlates with this finding?
A. Failure of the granulocyte population to return to baseline on the leukocyte histogram
B. Shift to the left of the erythrocyte population on the erythrocyte histogram
C. Failure of the lymphocyte population to begin at baseline on the leukocyte histogram
D. Shift to the right of the platelet population on the platelet histogram - CORRECT
ANSWER c. Failure of the lymphocyte population to begin at baseline on the leukocyte
histogram
A specimen for anaerobic culture is place in an anaerobic holding jar in order to:
A. Minimize exposure to oxygen
B. Maximize spore formation
C. Increase the growth rate of the sample
D. Decrease the exposure to UV light - CORRECT ANSWER a. Minimize the exposure to
oxygen
A clinical laboratory technician wishes to examine an unstained, wet preparation of cells or organism
prior to dehydration. Which of the following types of microscopes would be best to use in this
scenario?
A. Phase Contrast
B. Fluorescence
C. Brightfield
D. Electron - CORRECT ANSWER a. Phase Contrast
, An organism gives the following reactions: TSI and KIA alkaline slant over an acid butt, H2S positive
ferments glucose. Based on these reactions, what is the most likely identification of the organism?
A. Proteus mirabilis
B. Esherichia coli
C. Pseudomonas aeruginosa
D. Salmonella sp. - CORRECT ANSWER a. Proteus mirabilis
A pregnant woman who has active syphillis and a RPR of 1:32 is being treated with penicillin. She
gives birth to a baby boy. When the cord blood from the baby is tested, the RPR is 1:2. Based on the
above data, the most likely interpretation is:
A. The baby has congenital syphillis
B. The baby does not have syphillis. A titer this low represents passive acquisition of the antibody
from the mother
C. The baby does not have syphillis. A titer this low represents a biological false positive
D. No definitive conclusion can be made from this data. Further testing is necessary - CORRECT
ANSWER D.No definitive conclusion can be made from this data. Further testing is necessary
Which of the following potential donors would be acceptable for donation of whole blood?
A. An individual who had a tattoo applied
B. A phlebotomist with a reported needle stick injury 10 months ago
C. An individual who has just immigrated to U.S. from Great Britain
D. An 18-year old male taking antibiotics for a severe case of acne - CORRECT
ANSWER d.An 18-year old male taking antibiotics for a severe case of acne
An organism from a lung biopsy grew as mould at room temperature and a yeast at 37C. What is the
most appropriate way to interpret these results?
A. Specimen is contaminated, ask for repeat collection
B. Dimorphic fungus present
C. Two organisms are present but only the mould is significant
D. Two pathogens are present - CORRECT ANSWER b.Dimorphic fungus present
QUESTIONS AND CORRECT ANSWERS
To correctly report a colony count in a urine culture plated using a calibrated 0.001 ml loop, the
observed colony count must be multiplied by which of the following?
A. 1
B. 100
C. 1000
D. 2000 - CORRECT ANSWER c. 1000
Examination of peripheral blood smear revealed 12 nucleated erythrocytes per 100 leukocytes. Which
histogram observation correlates with this finding?
A. Failure of the granulocyte population to return to baseline on the leukocyte histogram
B. Shift to the left of the erythrocyte population on the erythrocyte histogram
C. Failure of the lymphocyte population to begin at baseline on the leukocyte histogram
D. Shift to the right of the platelet population on the platelet histogram - CORRECT
ANSWER c. Failure of the lymphocyte population to begin at baseline on the leukocyte
histogram
A specimen for anaerobic culture is place in an anaerobic holding jar in order to:
A. Minimize exposure to oxygen
B. Maximize spore formation
C. Increase the growth rate of the sample
D. Decrease the exposure to UV light - CORRECT ANSWER a. Minimize the exposure to
oxygen
A clinical laboratory technician wishes to examine an unstained, wet preparation of cells or organism
prior to dehydration. Which of the following types of microscopes would be best to use in this
scenario?
A. Phase Contrast
B. Fluorescence
C. Brightfield
D. Electron - CORRECT ANSWER a. Phase Contrast
, An organism gives the following reactions: TSI and KIA alkaline slant over an acid butt, H2S positive
ferments glucose. Based on these reactions, what is the most likely identification of the organism?
A. Proteus mirabilis
B. Esherichia coli
C. Pseudomonas aeruginosa
D. Salmonella sp. - CORRECT ANSWER a. Proteus mirabilis
A pregnant woman who has active syphillis and a RPR of 1:32 is being treated with penicillin. She
gives birth to a baby boy. When the cord blood from the baby is tested, the RPR is 1:2. Based on the
above data, the most likely interpretation is:
A. The baby has congenital syphillis
B. The baby does not have syphillis. A titer this low represents passive acquisition of the antibody
from the mother
C. The baby does not have syphillis. A titer this low represents a biological false positive
D. No definitive conclusion can be made from this data. Further testing is necessary - CORRECT
ANSWER D.No definitive conclusion can be made from this data. Further testing is necessary
Which of the following potential donors would be acceptable for donation of whole blood?
A. An individual who had a tattoo applied
B. A phlebotomist with a reported needle stick injury 10 months ago
C. An individual who has just immigrated to U.S. from Great Britain
D. An 18-year old male taking antibiotics for a severe case of acne - CORRECT
ANSWER d.An 18-year old male taking antibiotics for a severe case of acne
An organism from a lung biopsy grew as mould at room temperature and a yeast at 37C. What is the
most appropriate way to interpret these results?
A. Specimen is contaminated, ask for repeat collection
B. Dimorphic fungus present
C. Two organisms are present but only the mould is significant
D. Two pathogens are present - CORRECT ANSWER b.Dimorphic fungus present
