Pathophysiology Final Exam –
Rasmussen University 2026/2027
Question:
What are the four main types of shock?
Answer:
Hypovolemic, cardiogenic, obstructive, and distributive.
Question:
What is most likely happening if a patient comes to the ED with muscle
weakness on one side, difficulty speaking, and vision changes?
Answer:
Stroke.
Question:
What determines how disabled a spinal cord injury will be?
Answer:
The level of injury on the spinal cord.
,Question:
What kind of seizure involves stiffness followed by jerking of the arm
muscles and immediate loss of consciousness?
Answer:
Generalized tonic-clonic seizure (grand mal seizure).
Question:
What condition does a 27-year-old female with spasticity, gait imbalance,
and unilateral vision loss likely have?
Answer:
Multiple sclerosis.
Question:
What condition is indicated by an infant with a large head, bulging
fontanelles, and a high-pitched cry?
Answer:
Hydrocephalus.
,Question:
How does hydrocephalus present in adults?
Answer:
Increased intracranial pressure because the adult skull cannot expand.
Question:
What muscle finding is expected in a pediatric patient with cerebral palsy?
Answer:
Spasticity.
Question:
What happens to developmental milestones in a child with cerebral palsy?
Answer:
They are delayed.
Question:
What condition is suspected in a patient with nuchal rigidity, severe
headache, and photophobia?
Answer:
Meningitis.
, Question:
What is the abnormal posturing called when a patient has arms extended,
wrists flexed and turned outward?
Answer:
Decerebrate posturing.
Question:
What is the pathophysiology of multiple sclerosis?
Answer:
Autoimmune destruction and demyelination of the myelin sheath of
neurons.
Question:
What causes cerebral palsy?
Answer:
Non-progressive brain damage occurring before, during, or shortly after
birth.