NR 302 PRACTICE QUESTIONS BANK/ NR302 TEST BANK
A physician tells the nurse that a patient’s vertebra prominens is tender and asks the nurse to
reevaluate the area in 1 hour. The area of the body the nurse will assess is:
A. Just above the diaphragm.
B. Just lateral to the knee cap.
C. At the level of the C7 vertebra.
D. At the level of the T11 vertebra.
2. A mother brings her 2-month-old daughter in for an examination and says, “My
daughter rolled over against the wall, and now I have noticed that she has this spot that is soft on
the top of her head. Is something terribly wrong?” The nurse’s best response would be:
A. “Perhaps that could be a result of your dietary intake during
pregnancy.”
B. “Your baby may have craniosynostosis, a disease of the sutures of the
brain.”
C. “That ‘soft spot’ may be an indication of cretinism or congenital
hypothyroidism.”
D. “That ‘soft spot’ is normal, and actually allows for growth of the
brain during the first year of your baby’s life.”
3. The nurse notices that a patient’s palpebral fissures are not symmetric. On
examination, the nurse may find that damage has occurred to which cranial nerve (CN)?
A. III
B. V
C. VII
D. VIII
4. A patient is unable to differentiate between sharp and dull stimulation to both
sides of her face. The nurse suspects:
A. Bell palsy.
B. Damage to the trigeminal nerve.
C. Frostbite with resultant paresthesia to the cheeks.
D. Scleroderma.
,5. When examining the face of a patient, the nurse is aware that the two pairs of
salivary glands that are accessible to examination are the ___________ and ___________
glands.
A. Occipital; submental
B. Parotid; jugulodigastric
C. Parotid; submandibular
D. Submandibular; occipital
6. A patient comes to the clinic complaining of neck and shoulder pain and is unable
to turn her head. The nurse suspects damage to CN ______ and proceeds with the examination
by _____________.
A. XI; palpating the anterior and posterior triangles
B. XI; asking the patient to shrug her shoulders against resistance
C. XII; percussing the sternomastoid and submandibular neck muscles
D. XII; assessing for a positive Romberg sign
7. When examining a patient’s CN function, the nurse remembers that the muscles
in the neck that are innervated by CN XI are the:
A. Sternomastoid and trapezius.
B. Spinal accessory and omohyoid.
C. Trapezius and sternomandibular.
D. Sternomandibular and spinal accessory.
8. A patient’s laboratory data reveal an elevated thyroxine (T4) level. The nurse
would proceed with an examination of the _____ gland.
A. Thyroid
B. Parotid
C. Adrenal
D. Parathyroid
,9. A patient says that she has recently noticed a lump in the front of her neck below
her “Adam’s apple” that seems to be getting bigger. During the assessment, the finding that leads
the nurse to suspect that this may not be a cancerous thyroid nodule is that the lump (nodule):
A. Is tender.
B. Is mobile and not hard.
C. Disappears when the patient smiles.
D. Is hard and fixed to the surrounding structures.
10. The nurse notices that a patient’s submental lymph nodes are enlarged. In an
effort to identify the cause of the node enlargement, the nurse would assess the patient’s:
A. Infraclavicular area.
B. Supraclavicular area.
C. Area distal to the enlarged node.
D. Area proximal to the enlarged node.
11. The nurse is aware that the four areas in the body where lymph nodes are
accessible are the:
A. Head, breasts, groin, and abdomen.
B. Arms, breasts, inguinal area, and legs.
C. Head and neck, arms, breasts, and axillae.
D. Head and neck, arms, inguinal area, and axillae.
12. A mother brings her newborn in for an assessment and asks, “Is there something
wrong with my baby? His head seems so big.” Which statement is true regarding the relative
proportions of the head and trunk of the newborn?
A. At birth, the head is one fifth the total length.
B. Head circumference should be greater than chest circumference at
birth.
C. The head size reaches 90% of its final size when the child is 3 years
old.
D. When the anterior fontanel closes at 2 months, the head will be more
proportioned to the body.
, 13. A patient, an 85-year-old woman, is complaining about the fact that the bones in
her face have become more noticeable. What explanation should the nurse give her?
A. Diets low in protein and high in carbohydrates may cause enhanced
facial bones.
B. Bones can become more noticeable if the person does not use a
dermatologically approved moisturizer.
C. More noticeable facial bones are probably due to a combination of
factors related to aging, such as decreased elasticity, subcutaneous fat, and moisture in
her skin.
D. Facial skin becomes more elastic with age. This increased elasticity
causes the skin to be more taught, drawing attention to the facial bones.
14. A patient reports excruciating headache pain on one side of his head, especially
around his eye, forehead, and cheek that has lasted approximately ½ to 2 hours, occurring once
or twice each day. The nurse should suspect:
A. Hypertension.
B. Cluster headaches.
C. Tension headaches.
D. Migraine headaches.
15. A patient complains that while studying for an examination he began to notice a
severe headache in the frontotemporal area of his head that is throbbing and is somewhat
relieved when he lies down. He tells the nurse that his mother also had these headaches. The
nurse suspects that he may be suffering from:
A. Hypertension.
B. Cluster headaches.
C. Tension headaches.
D. Migraine headaches.
16. A 19-year-old college student is brought to the emergency department with a
severe headache he describes as, “Like nothing I’ve ever had before.” His temperature is 40° C,
and he has a stiff neck. The nurse looks for other signs and symptoms of which problem?
A. Head injury
B. Cluster headache
C. Migraine headache
A physician tells the nurse that a patient’s vertebra prominens is tender and asks the nurse to
reevaluate the area in 1 hour. The area of the body the nurse will assess is:
A. Just above the diaphragm.
B. Just lateral to the knee cap.
C. At the level of the C7 vertebra.
D. At the level of the T11 vertebra.
2. A mother brings her 2-month-old daughter in for an examination and says, “My
daughter rolled over against the wall, and now I have noticed that she has this spot that is soft on
the top of her head. Is something terribly wrong?” The nurse’s best response would be:
A. “Perhaps that could be a result of your dietary intake during
pregnancy.”
B. “Your baby may have craniosynostosis, a disease of the sutures of the
brain.”
C. “That ‘soft spot’ may be an indication of cretinism or congenital
hypothyroidism.”
D. “That ‘soft spot’ is normal, and actually allows for growth of the
brain during the first year of your baby’s life.”
3. The nurse notices that a patient’s palpebral fissures are not symmetric. On
examination, the nurse may find that damage has occurred to which cranial nerve (CN)?
A. III
B. V
C. VII
D. VIII
4. A patient is unable to differentiate between sharp and dull stimulation to both
sides of her face. The nurse suspects:
A. Bell palsy.
B. Damage to the trigeminal nerve.
C. Frostbite with resultant paresthesia to the cheeks.
D. Scleroderma.
,5. When examining the face of a patient, the nurse is aware that the two pairs of
salivary glands that are accessible to examination are the ___________ and ___________
glands.
A. Occipital; submental
B. Parotid; jugulodigastric
C. Parotid; submandibular
D. Submandibular; occipital
6. A patient comes to the clinic complaining of neck and shoulder pain and is unable
to turn her head. The nurse suspects damage to CN ______ and proceeds with the examination
by _____________.
A. XI; palpating the anterior and posterior triangles
B. XI; asking the patient to shrug her shoulders against resistance
C. XII; percussing the sternomastoid and submandibular neck muscles
D. XII; assessing for a positive Romberg sign
7. When examining a patient’s CN function, the nurse remembers that the muscles
in the neck that are innervated by CN XI are the:
A. Sternomastoid and trapezius.
B. Spinal accessory and omohyoid.
C. Trapezius and sternomandibular.
D. Sternomandibular and spinal accessory.
8. A patient’s laboratory data reveal an elevated thyroxine (T4) level. The nurse
would proceed with an examination of the _____ gland.
A. Thyroid
B. Parotid
C. Adrenal
D. Parathyroid
,9. A patient says that she has recently noticed a lump in the front of her neck below
her “Adam’s apple” that seems to be getting bigger. During the assessment, the finding that leads
the nurse to suspect that this may not be a cancerous thyroid nodule is that the lump (nodule):
A. Is tender.
B. Is mobile and not hard.
C. Disappears when the patient smiles.
D. Is hard and fixed to the surrounding structures.
10. The nurse notices that a patient’s submental lymph nodes are enlarged. In an
effort to identify the cause of the node enlargement, the nurse would assess the patient’s:
A. Infraclavicular area.
B. Supraclavicular area.
C. Area distal to the enlarged node.
D. Area proximal to the enlarged node.
11. The nurse is aware that the four areas in the body where lymph nodes are
accessible are the:
A. Head, breasts, groin, and abdomen.
B. Arms, breasts, inguinal area, and legs.
C. Head and neck, arms, breasts, and axillae.
D. Head and neck, arms, inguinal area, and axillae.
12. A mother brings her newborn in for an assessment and asks, “Is there something
wrong with my baby? His head seems so big.” Which statement is true regarding the relative
proportions of the head and trunk of the newborn?
A. At birth, the head is one fifth the total length.
B. Head circumference should be greater than chest circumference at
birth.
C. The head size reaches 90% of its final size when the child is 3 years
old.
D. When the anterior fontanel closes at 2 months, the head will be more
proportioned to the body.
, 13. A patient, an 85-year-old woman, is complaining about the fact that the bones in
her face have become more noticeable. What explanation should the nurse give her?
A. Diets low in protein and high in carbohydrates may cause enhanced
facial bones.
B. Bones can become more noticeable if the person does not use a
dermatologically approved moisturizer.
C. More noticeable facial bones are probably due to a combination of
factors related to aging, such as decreased elasticity, subcutaneous fat, and moisture in
her skin.
D. Facial skin becomes more elastic with age. This increased elasticity
causes the skin to be more taught, drawing attention to the facial bones.
14. A patient reports excruciating headache pain on one side of his head, especially
around his eye, forehead, and cheek that has lasted approximately ½ to 2 hours, occurring once
or twice each day. The nurse should suspect:
A. Hypertension.
B. Cluster headaches.
C. Tension headaches.
D. Migraine headaches.
15. A patient complains that while studying for an examination he began to notice a
severe headache in the frontotemporal area of his head that is throbbing and is somewhat
relieved when he lies down. He tells the nurse that his mother also had these headaches. The
nurse suspects that he may be suffering from:
A. Hypertension.
B. Cluster headaches.
C. Tension headaches.
D. Migraine headaches.
16. A 19-year-old college student is brought to the emergency department with a
severe headache he describes as, “Like nothing I’ve ever had before.” His temperature is 40° C,
and he has a stiff neck. The nurse looks for other signs and symptoms of which problem?
A. Head injury
B. Cluster headache
C. Migraine headache
