ABSITE Critical Care Updated 2025
Complete Exam Questions with
Elaborated Correct Answers||A+
GRADED||100% GUARANTEED
PASS!!!<<LATEST VERSION>>
pulmonary artery catheters - ANSWER ✓ Allow accurate approximation
of left atrial pressure.
All are potential causes of cardiogenic shock except:
- Myocardial infarction.
- Pericardial tamponade.
- Tension pneumothorax.
- Cardiac arrhythmias.
- Excessive preload. - ANSWER ✓ Excessive preload.
(Excessive preload is typically not a cause of cardiogenic shock, but is a
result of cardiogenic shock.)
pericardial tamponade - ANSWER ✓ It is associated with a "paradoxical
pulse."
(Which is an increased difference between peak-to-peak systolic
pressures with inspiration and expiration.)
A 20-year old man has suffered a gunshot wound to the abdomen. At
laparotomy, the patient is found to have a grade IV liver injury with 2.5
L blood loss. The patient is coagulopathic with a temperature of 32.5°C.
All of the following should be immediate management considerations: -
ANSWER ✓ - Correction of acidosis.
- Administration of fresh frozen plasma and platelets.
- Damage control procedure.
,- Patient rewarming.
(Until adequate blood and blood products are administered, recombinant
factor VII is not indicated. Furthermore, to date, administration of
recombinant factor VII has failed to show survival benefit in this patient
population.)
EKG evidence of pericarditis - ANSWER ✓ ST-segment elevation in
all leads.
The most accurate modality for diagnosis of an abdominal aortic
aneurysm - ANSWER ✓ Computed tomography. (Computed
tomography is one of the best ways of diagnosing abdominal aortic
aneurysms. It can also accurately measure the size, and, with a fair
degree of accuracy, tell whether the aneurysm has leaked or not.)
A hemodynamic characteristic of cardiac tamponade - ANSWER ✓
Decreased pulmonary venous return.
ventilation-perfusion relationships - ANSWER ✓ - Zone one is worse
perfused than zones two or three.
- Hypovolemia and positive pressure ventilation diminishes zone three.
- Zone three alveoli are more compliant than zones one or two.
- Hypoxic pulmonary vasoconstriction augments ventilation-perfusion
matching.
- Regional perfusion is determined predominantly by gravity.
(Gravity and pulmonary artery pressure, acting in opposite manner,
determine the extent of zone one, which is characterized by larger, less-
well ventilated, less compliant, nonperfused alveoli. The opposite
characteristics transition downward through zone two to zone three
alveoli. At low PA pressures, gravity dominates and zone one is larger.
Hypovolemia causes low PA pressure and positive pressure ventilation
increases alveolar pressure, both of which tend to increase zone one and
decrease the other two zones. In instances where alveoli are not
ventilated, as with atelectasis or consolidation, hypoxic pulmonary
,vasoconstriction reflexively occurs to limit perfusion to these areas and
augment V̇/Q̇ matching. )
A previously healthy 24-year old man fell 20 ft from a balcony in the
French Quarter, landing on his back. On arrival to the emergency room,
he states that he cannot move his arms or legs. On physical examination,
his blood pressure is 70/35 mmHg, his heart rate is 58 bpm, his arms and
legs are warm and pink, and he smells strongly of alcohol. After infusion
of 2 L of crystalloid, his blood pressure is still only 80/40 mm Hg. The
only finding on his trauma series is a C6-7 subluxation. The most
important next step in his management is: - ANSWER ✓ Investigations
designed to detect intra-abdominal injury.
(The force imparted by a 20 ft fall onto one's back is significant enough
to cause intra-abdominal injuries in addition to a neck subluxation.
Refractory hypotension in this setting demands an immediate workup for
sources of hemorrhage.)
Which of the following determines arterial oxygen content - ANSWER
✓ Arterial oxygen saturation of Hgb, Hgb, and partial pressure of O
dissolved in plasma.
Congenital heart disease with abnormal shunting is associated with a
significant risk during surgical operations of any kind for all of the
following reasons - ANSWER ✓ - Emboli.
- Arterial desaturation.
- Endocarditis.
(Congenital heart disease does not usually cause lethal ventricular
arrhythmias. All of the other conditions in this list are associated with
congenital heart disease and do increase the risk of operation.)
Pressure and/or flow are decreased by an arterial stenosis that -
ANSWER ✓ Reduces diameter by 50%.
, (An arterial stenosis that on arteriography appears to decrease the
diameter by at least 50% decreases the cross-sectional area by 75% is a
flow-limiting lesion. )
Which of the following are not appropriate interventions for decreasing
the incidence of the systemic inflammatory response (SIRS) and
multiple organ failure (MOF)?
- Early fixation of long bone fractures.
- Infusion of anti-TNF-α antibody.
- Early enteral feeding.
- Decreased ventilatory tidal volumes. - ANSWER ✓ Infusion of anti-
TNF-α antibody.
(Given the role which TNF-α has been shown to play in SIRS and MOF,
blocking its actions by an antibody seems intuitively attractive. Further,
animal studies gave hope that this modality would improve outcomes
from these conditions. Sadly, studies in humans have not borne this out.
Other trials with anti-IL-1 and antiendotoxin also failed to show a
therapeutic benefit.)
The induction of general anesthesia in a patient with cardiac tamponade
- ANSWER ✓ Can interfere with a peripheral vasoconstriction and
produce hypotension.
(General anesthesia causes peripheral vasodilatation instead of
constriction and hypotension may result. The slope will actually worsen
if systemic vascular resistance is decreased.)
Measurement of cardiac output using the Fick principle requires -
ANSWER ✓ - Arterial oxygen content.
- Mixed venous oxygen content.
- Oxygen consumption.
A 60-year-old man has an arterial PO of 60 mm Hg when the calculated
alveolar PO is 94 mm Hg. This difference is most commonly due to -
ANSWER ✓ a ventilation-perfusion mismatch
Complete Exam Questions with
Elaborated Correct Answers||A+
GRADED||100% GUARANTEED
PASS!!!<<LATEST VERSION>>
pulmonary artery catheters - ANSWER ✓ Allow accurate approximation
of left atrial pressure.
All are potential causes of cardiogenic shock except:
- Myocardial infarction.
- Pericardial tamponade.
- Tension pneumothorax.
- Cardiac arrhythmias.
- Excessive preload. - ANSWER ✓ Excessive preload.
(Excessive preload is typically not a cause of cardiogenic shock, but is a
result of cardiogenic shock.)
pericardial tamponade - ANSWER ✓ It is associated with a "paradoxical
pulse."
(Which is an increased difference between peak-to-peak systolic
pressures with inspiration and expiration.)
A 20-year old man has suffered a gunshot wound to the abdomen. At
laparotomy, the patient is found to have a grade IV liver injury with 2.5
L blood loss. The patient is coagulopathic with a temperature of 32.5°C.
All of the following should be immediate management considerations: -
ANSWER ✓ - Correction of acidosis.
- Administration of fresh frozen plasma and platelets.
- Damage control procedure.
,- Patient rewarming.
(Until adequate blood and blood products are administered, recombinant
factor VII is not indicated. Furthermore, to date, administration of
recombinant factor VII has failed to show survival benefit in this patient
population.)
EKG evidence of pericarditis - ANSWER ✓ ST-segment elevation in
all leads.
The most accurate modality for diagnosis of an abdominal aortic
aneurysm - ANSWER ✓ Computed tomography. (Computed
tomography is one of the best ways of diagnosing abdominal aortic
aneurysms. It can also accurately measure the size, and, with a fair
degree of accuracy, tell whether the aneurysm has leaked or not.)
A hemodynamic characteristic of cardiac tamponade - ANSWER ✓
Decreased pulmonary venous return.
ventilation-perfusion relationships - ANSWER ✓ - Zone one is worse
perfused than zones two or three.
- Hypovolemia and positive pressure ventilation diminishes zone three.
- Zone three alveoli are more compliant than zones one or two.
- Hypoxic pulmonary vasoconstriction augments ventilation-perfusion
matching.
- Regional perfusion is determined predominantly by gravity.
(Gravity and pulmonary artery pressure, acting in opposite manner,
determine the extent of zone one, which is characterized by larger, less-
well ventilated, less compliant, nonperfused alveoli. The opposite
characteristics transition downward through zone two to zone three
alveoli. At low PA pressures, gravity dominates and zone one is larger.
Hypovolemia causes low PA pressure and positive pressure ventilation
increases alveolar pressure, both of which tend to increase zone one and
decrease the other two zones. In instances where alveoli are not
ventilated, as with atelectasis or consolidation, hypoxic pulmonary
,vasoconstriction reflexively occurs to limit perfusion to these areas and
augment V̇/Q̇ matching. )
A previously healthy 24-year old man fell 20 ft from a balcony in the
French Quarter, landing on his back. On arrival to the emergency room,
he states that he cannot move his arms or legs. On physical examination,
his blood pressure is 70/35 mmHg, his heart rate is 58 bpm, his arms and
legs are warm and pink, and he smells strongly of alcohol. After infusion
of 2 L of crystalloid, his blood pressure is still only 80/40 mm Hg. The
only finding on his trauma series is a C6-7 subluxation. The most
important next step in his management is: - ANSWER ✓ Investigations
designed to detect intra-abdominal injury.
(The force imparted by a 20 ft fall onto one's back is significant enough
to cause intra-abdominal injuries in addition to a neck subluxation.
Refractory hypotension in this setting demands an immediate workup for
sources of hemorrhage.)
Which of the following determines arterial oxygen content - ANSWER
✓ Arterial oxygen saturation of Hgb, Hgb, and partial pressure of O
dissolved in plasma.
Congenital heart disease with abnormal shunting is associated with a
significant risk during surgical operations of any kind for all of the
following reasons - ANSWER ✓ - Emboli.
- Arterial desaturation.
- Endocarditis.
(Congenital heart disease does not usually cause lethal ventricular
arrhythmias. All of the other conditions in this list are associated with
congenital heart disease and do increase the risk of operation.)
Pressure and/or flow are decreased by an arterial stenosis that -
ANSWER ✓ Reduces diameter by 50%.
, (An arterial stenosis that on arteriography appears to decrease the
diameter by at least 50% decreases the cross-sectional area by 75% is a
flow-limiting lesion. )
Which of the following are not appropriate interventions for decreasing
the incidence of the systemic inflammatory response (SIRS) and
multiple organ failure (MOF)?
- Early fixation of long bone fractures.
- Infusion of anti-TNF-α antibody.
- Early enteral feeding.
- Decreased ventilatory tidal volumes. - ANSWER ✓ Infusion of anti-
TNF-α antibody.
(Given the role which TNF-α has been shown to play in SIRS and MOF,
blocking its actions by an antibody seems intuitively attractive. Further,
animal studies gave hope that this modality would improve outcomes
from these conditions. Sadly, studies in humans have not borne this out.
Other trials with anti-IL-1 and antiendotoxin also failed to show a
therapeutic benefit.)
The induction of general anesthesia in a patient with cardiac tamponade
- ANSWER ✓ Can interfere with a peripheral vasoconstriction and
produce hypotension.
(General anesthesia causes peripheral vasodilatation instead of
constriction and hypotension may result. The slope will actually worsen
if systemic vascular resistance is decreased.)
Measurement of cardiac output using the Fick principle requires -
ANSWER ✓ - Arterial oxygen content.
- Mixed venous oxygen content.
- Oxygen consumption.
A 60-year-old man has an arterial PO of 60 mm Hg when the calculated
alveolar PO is 94 mm Hg. This difference is most commonly due to -
ANSWER ✓ a ventilation-perfusion mismatch
