PHYSICAL EXAMINATION AND
HEALTH ASSESSMENT CHAPTER 9
EXAM QUESTIONS AND THEIR
EXPECTED VERIFIED ANSWERS
The nurse is performing a general survey. Which
action is a component of the general survey?
a. Observing the patient's body stature and nutritional
status
b. Interpreting the subjective information the patient
has reported
c. Measuring the patient's temperature, pulse,
respirations, and blood pressure
d. Observing specific body systems while performing
the physical assessment
a. Observing the patient's body stature and nutritional
status
When measuring a patient's weight, the nurse is aware
of which of these guidelines?
a. The patient is always weighed wearing only his or
her undergarments.
b. The type of scale does not matter, as long as the
weights are similar from day to day.
c. The patient may leave on his or her jacket and
shoes as long as these are documented next to the
weight.
d. Attempts should be made to weigh the patient at
,approximately the same time of day, if a sequence of
weights is necessary.
d. Attempts should be made to weigh the patient at
approximately the same time of day, if a sequence of
weights is necessary.
A patient's weekly blood pressure readings for 2
months have ranged between 124/84 mm Hg and
136/88 mm Hg, with an average reading of 126/86 mm
Hg. The nurse knows that this blood pressure falls
within which blood pressure category?
a. Normal blood pressure
b. Prehypertension
c. stage 1 hypertension
d. Stage 2 hypertension
b. Prehypertension
During an examination of a child, the nurse considers
that physical growth is the best index of a child's:
a. General health.
b. Genetic makeup.
c. Nutritional status.
d. Activity and exercise patterns.
a. General health.
The nurse is assessing an 80-year-old male patient.
Which assessment findings would be considered
normal?
a. Increase in body weight from his younger years
b. Additional deposits of fat on the thighs and lower
legs
c. Presence of kyphosis and flexion in the knees and
hips
, d. Change in overall body proportion, including a
longer trunk and shorter extremities
c. Presence of kyphosis and flexion in the knees and hips
The nurse should measure rectal temperatures in
which of these patients?
a. School-age child
b. Older adult
c. Comatose adult
d. Patient receiving oxygen by nasal cannula
c. Comatose adult
The nurse knows that one advantage of the tympanic
membrane thermometer (TMT) is that:
a. Rapid measurement is useful for uncooperative
younger children.
b. Using the TMT is the most accurate method for
measuring body temperature in newborn infants.
c. Measuring temperature using the TMT is
inexpensive.
d. Studies strongly support the use of the TMT in
children under the age 6 years.
a. Rapid measurement is useful for uncooperative younger
children.
When assessing an older adult, which vital sign
changes occur with aging?
a. Increase in pulse rate
b. Widened pulse pressure
c. Increase in body temperature
d. Decrease in diastolic blood pressure
b. Widened pulse pressure
The nurse is examining a patient who is complaining
of "feeling cold." Which is a mechanism of heat loss
HEALTH ASSESSMENT CHAPTER 9
EXAM QUESTIONS AND THEIR
EXPECTED VERIFIED ANSWERS
The nurse is performing a general survey. Which
action is a component of the general survey?
a. Observing the patient's body stature and nutritional
status
b. Interpreting the subjective information the patient
has reported
c. Measuring the patient's temperature, pulse,
respirations, and blood pressure
d. Observing specific body systems while performing
the physical assessment
a. Observing the patient's body stature and nutritional
status
When measuring a patient's weight, the nurse is aware
of which of these guidelines?
a. The patient is always weighed wearing only his or
her undergarments.
b. The type of scale does not matter, as long as the
weights are similar from day to day.
c. The patient may leave on his or her jacket and
shoes as long as these are documented next to the
weight.
d. Attempts should be made to weigh the patient at
,approximately the same time of day, if a sequence of
weights is necessary.
d. Attempts should be made to weigh the patient at
approximately the same time of day, if a sequence of
weights is necessary.
A patient's weekly blood pressure readings for 2
months have ranged between 124/84 mm Hg and
136/88 mm Hg, with an average reading of 126/86 mm
Hg. The nurse knows that this blood pressure falls
within which blood pressure category?
a. Normal blood pressure
b. Prehypertension
c. stage 1 hypertension
d. Stage 2 hypertension
b. Prehypertension
During an examination of a child, the nurse considers
that physical growth is the best index of a child's:
a. General health.
b. Genetic makeup.
c. Nutritional status.
d. Activity and exercise patterns.
a. General health.
The nurse is assessing an 80-year-old male patient.
Which assessment findings would be considered
normal?
a. Increase in body weight from his younger years
b. Additional deposits of fat on the thighs and lower
legs
c. Presence of kyphosis and flexion in the knees and
hips
, d. Change in overall body proportion, including a
longer trunk and shorter extremities
c. Presence of kyphosis and flexion in the knees and hips
The nurse should measure rectal temperatures in
which of these patients?
a. School-age child
b. Older adult
c. Comatose adult
d. Patient receiving oxygen by nasal cannula
c. Comatose adult
The nurse knows that one advantage of the tympanic
membrane thermometer (TMT) is that:
a. Rapid measurement is useful for uncooperative
younger children.
b. Using the TMT is the most accurate method for
measuring body temperature in newborn infants.
c. Measuring temperature using the TMT is
inexpensive.
d. Studies strongly support the use of the TMT in
children under the age 6 years.
a. Rapid measurement is useful for uncooperative younger
children.
When assessing an older adult, which vital sign
changes occur with aging?
a. Increase in pulse rate
b. Widened pulse pressure
c. Increase in body temperature
d. Decrease in diastolic blood pressure
b. Widened pulse pressure
The nurse is examining a patient who is complaining
of "feeling cold." Which is a mechanism of heat loss
