UNDERSTANDING PATHO EXAM SUCCESS: ULTIMATE
A+, QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS BREAKDOWN
A nurse is teaching about the heart. Which information should the nurse include? The chamber of the
heart that generates the highest pressure is the:
A. Right atrium
B. Left atrium
C. Left ventricle
D. Right ventricle
Left ventricle
A nurse is discussing the different types of regulation. Which regulation is the nurse describing? Local
myogenic regulation of blood vessel diameter and thus blood flow through a vessel is an example of:
A. Autonomic regulation
B. Somatic regulation
C. Autoregulation
D. Metabolic regulation
Autoregulation
Which information by the nurse indicates a good understanding of depolarization? Depolarization of a
cardiac muscle cell occurs as the result of:
A. A decrease in the permeability of the cell membrane to ions
B. The rapid movement of ions across the cell membrane
C. A blockade by calcium ions
D. Stimuli instigated during the refractory period
A decrease in the permeability of the cell membrane to ions
A new drug is released to aid in weight loss. It stimulates the sympathetic system. The nurse monitors
for an increased heart rate. The sympathetic system causes this by:
A. Inhibiting the release of catecholamines
B. Altering the threshold potential
C. Decreasing the conduction time through the atrioventricular (AV) node
D. Increasing the influx of calcium
Altering the threshold potential
A 54-year-old male is diagnosed with left bundle branch block. Which of the following structures
would not receive an electrical impulse?
A. Atrioventricular (AV) node
,B. Sinoatrial (SA) node
C. Bundle of His
D. The left ventricle
The left ventricle
When a nursing student wants to know where the primary cardiovascular control center is located,
what is the nurse's best response? In the:
A. Cerebral cortex
B. Midbrain
C. Medulla
D. Cervical spinal cord
Medulla
A nurse is discussing the pressure generated at the end of diastole. Which term is the nurse
describing?
A. Preload
B. Afterload
C. Systemic vascular resistance
D. Total peripheral resistance
Preload
A cardiologist is teaching about myocardial cells. Which information should the cardiologist include?
_____ are thickened areas of the sarcolemma of myocardial cells that enable electrical impulses to
travel in a continuous cell-to-cell fashion.
A. Myosins
B. Intercalated disks
C. Troponin Ts
D. I bands
Intercalated disks
A cardiologist is discussing valves with the staff. Which information should the cardiologist include?
_____ are the anchors of the atrioventricular valves.
A. Chordae tendineae cordis
B. Great vessels
C. Coronary ostia
D. Trabeculae carneae
Chordae tendineae cordis
When a student nurse asks the nurse how the cardiac electrical impulse normally begins, what is the
most correct response? The cardiac electrical impulse normally begins spontaneously in the sinoatrial
, (SA) node because it:
A. Has a superior location in the right atrium
B. Is the only area of the heart capable of spontaneous depolarization
C. Has rich sympathetic innervation via the vagus nerve
D. Depolarizes more rapidly than other automatic cells of the heart
Depolarizes more rapidly than other automatic cells of the heart
The nurse is reviewing a normal electrocardiogram. The nurse assesses
the PR interval because it represents:
A. Atrial depolarization
B. Ventricular depolarization
C. Onset of atrial activation to onset of ventricular activity
D. "Electrical systole" of the ventricles
Onset of atrial activation to onset of ventricular activity
A 75-year-old male has severe chest pain and dials 911. Lab tests at the hospital reveal elevated levels
of cardiac troponins I and T. Based upon the lab findings, the nurse suspects which of the following
has occurred?
A. Orthostatic hypotension
B. Varicose veins
C. Myocardial infarction (MI)
D. Raynaud disease
Myocardial infarction (MI)
A nurse is teaching staff about endocarditis. Which information should the nurse include?
Inflammatory cells have difficulty limiting the colonization of microorganisms in infective endocarditis
because the:
A. Colonies overwhelm the phagocytes.
B. Microorganisms are resistant.
C. Valves are avascular.
D. Microorganisms are sequestered in a fibrin clot.
Microorganisms are sequestered in a fibrin clot
A 28-year-old female presents with severe chest pain and shortness of breath. She is diagnosed with
pulmonary embolism, which most likely originated from the:
A. Deep veins of the leg
B. Superficial veins of the arm
C. Left ventricle
D. Systemic arteries
A+, QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS BREAKDOWN
A nurse is teaching about the heart. Which information should the nurse include? The chamber of the
heart that generates the highest pressure is the:
A. Right atrium
B. Left atrium
C. Left ventricle
D. Right ventricle
Left ventricle
A nurse is discussing the different types of regulation. Which regulation is the nurse describing? Local
myogenic regulation of blood vessel diameter and thus blood flow through a vessel is an example of:
A. Autonomic regulation
B. Somatic regulation
C. Autoregulation
D. Metabolic regulation
Autoregulation
Which information by the nurse indicates a good understanding of depolarization? Depolarization of a
cardiac muscle cell occurs as the result of:
A. A decrease in the permeability of the cell membrane to ions
B. The rapid movement of ions across the cell membrane
C. A blockade by calcium ions
D. Stimuli instigated during the refractory period
A decrease in the permeability of the cell membrane to ions
A new drug is released to aid in weight loss. It stimulates the sympathetic system. The nurse monitors
for an increased heart rate. The sympathetic system causes this by:
A. Inhibiting the release of catecholamines
B. Altering the threshold potential
C. Decreasing the conduction time through the atrioventricular (AV) node
D. Increasing the influx of calcium
Altering the threshold potential
A 54-year-old male is diagnosed with left bundle branch block. Which of the following structures
would not receive an electrical impulse?
A. Atrioventricular (AV) node
,B. Sinoatrial (SA) node
C. Bundle of His
D. The left ventricle
The left ventricle
When a nursing student wants to know where the primary cardiovascular control center is located,
what is the nurse's best response? In the:
A. Cerebral cortex
B. Midbrain
C. Medulla
D. Cervical spinal cord
Medulla
A nurse is discussing the pressure generated at the end of diastole. Which term is the nurse
describing?
A. Preload
B. Afterload
C. Systemic vascular resistance
D. Total peripheral resistance
Preload
A cardiologist is teaching about myocardial cells. Which information should the cardiologist include?
_____ are thickened areas of the sarcolemma of myocardial cells that enable electrical impulses to
travel in a continuous cell-to-cell fashion.
A. Myosins
B. Intercalated disks
C. Troponin Ts
D. I bands
Intercalated disks
A cardiologist is discussing valves with the staff. Which information should the cardiologist include?
_____ are the anchors of the atrioventricular valves.
A. Chordae tendineae cordis
B. Great vessels
C. Coronary ostia
D. Trabeculae carneae
Chordae tendineae cordis
When a student nurse asks the nurse how the cardiac electrical impulse normally begins, what is the
most correct response? The cardiac electrical impulse normally begins spontaneously in the sinoatrial
, (SA) node because it:
A. Has a superior location in the right atrium
B. Is the only area of the heart capable of spontaneous depolarization
C. Has rich sympathetic innervation via the vagus nerve
D. Depolarizes more rapidly than other automatic cells of the heart
Depolarizes more rapidly than other automatic cells of the heart
The nurse is reviewing a normal electrocardiogram. The nurse assesses
the PR interval because it represents:
A. Atrial depolarization
B. Ventricular depolarization
C. Onset of atrial activation to onset of ventricular activity
D. "Electrical systole" of the ventricles
Onset of atrial activation to onset of ventricular activity
A 75-year-old male has severe chest pain and dials 911. Lab tests at the hospital reveal elevated levels
of cardiac troponins I and T. Based upon the lab findings, the nurse suspects which of the following
has occurred?
A. Orthostatic hypotension
B. Varicose veins
C. Myocardial infarction (MI)
D. Raynaud disease
Myocardial infarction (MI)
A nurse is teaching staff about endocarditis. Which information should the nurse include?
Inflammatory cells have difficulty limiting the colonization of microorganisms in infective endocarditis
because the:
A. Colonies overwhelm the phagocytes.
B. Microorganisms are resistant.
C. Valves are avascular.
D. Microorganisms are sequestered in a fibrin clot.
Microorganisms are sequestered in a fibrin clot
A 28-year-old female presents with severe chest pain and shortness of breath. She is diagnosed with
pulmonary embolism, which most likely originated from the:
A. Deep veins of the leg
B. Superficial veins of the arm
C. Left ventricle
D. Systemic arteries
