Health Assessment 2 Final Exam
Review, Jarvis CH. 18, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25,
26, 27, 28 Questions and Answers
The two parts of the nervous system are the:
a. Motor and sensory.
b. Central and peripheral.
c. Peripheral and autonomic.
d. Hypothalamus and cerebral. - Answers -B
The wife of a 65-year-old man tells the nurse that she is concerned because she has
noticed a change in her husband's personality and ability to understand. He also cries
very easily and becomes angry. The nurse recalls that the cerebral lobe responsible for
these behaviors is the __________ lobe.
a. Frontal
b. Parietal
c. Occipital
d. Temporal - Answers -A
Which statement concerning the areas of the brain is true?
a. The cerebellum is the center for speech and emotions.
b. The hypothalamus controls body temperature and regulates sleep.
c. The basal ganglia are responsible for controlling voluntary movements.
d. Motor pathways of the spinal cord and brainstem synapse in the thalamus. - Answers
-B
The area of the nervous system that is responsible for mediating reflexes is the:
a. Medulla.
b. Cerebellum.
c. Spinal cord.
d. Cerebral cortex - Answers -C
While gathering equipment after an injection, a nurse accidentally received a prick from
an improperly capped needle. To interpret this sensation, which of these areas must be
intact?
,a. Corticospinal tract, medulla, and basal ganglia
b. Pyramidal tract, hypothalamus, and sensory cortex
c. Lateral spinothalamic tract, thalamus, and sensory cortex
d. Anterior spinothalamic tract, basal ganglia, and sensory cortex - Answers -C
A patient with a lack of oxygen to his heart will have pain in his chest and possibly in the
shoulder, arms, or jaw. The nurse knows that the best explanation why this occurs is
which one of these statements?
a. A problem exists with the sensory cortex and its ability to discriminate the location.
b. The lack of oxygen in his heart has resulted in decreased amount of oxygen to the
areas experiencing the pain.
c. The sensory cortex does not have the ability to localize pain in the heart;
consequently, the pain is felt elsewhere.
d. A lesion has developed in the dorsal root, which is preventing the sensation from
being transmitted normally. - Answers -C
The ability that humans have to perform very skilled movements such as writing is
controlled by the:
a. Basal ganglia.
b. Corticospinal tract.
c. Spinothalamic tract.
d. Extrapyramidal tract. - Answers -B
A 30-year-old woman tells the nurse that she has been very unsteady and has had
difficulty in maintaining her balance. Which area of the brain that is related to these
findings would concern the nurse?
a. Thalamus
b. Brainstem
c. Cerebellum
d. Extrapyramidal tract - Answers -C
Which of these statements about the peripheral nervous system is correct?
a. The CNs enter the brain through the spinal cord.
b. Efferent fibers carry sensory input to the central nervous system through the spinal
cord.
c. The peripheral nerves are inside the central nervous system and carry impulses
through their motor fibers.
d. The peripheral nerves carry input to the central nervous system by afferent fibers and
away from the central nervous system by efferent fibers. - Answers -D
A patient has a severed spinal nerve as a result of trauma. Which statement is true in
this situation?
,a. Because there are 31 pairs of spinal nerves, no effect results if only one nerve is
severed.
b. The dermatome served by this nerve will no longer experience any sensation.
c. The adjacent spinal nerves will continue to carry sensations for the dermatome
served by the severed nerve.
d. A severed spinal nerve will only affect motor function of the patient because spinal
nerves have no sensory component. - Answers -C
A 21-year-old patient has a head injury resulting from trauma and is unconscious. There
are no other injuries. During the assessment what would the nurse expect to find when
testing the patient's deep tendon reflexes?
a. Reflexes will be normal.
b. Reflexes cannot be elicited.
c. All reflexes will be diminished but present.
d. Some reflexes will be present, depending on the area of injury. - Answers -A
During an assessment of an 80-year-old patient, the nurse notices the following: an
inability to identify vibrations at her ankle and to identify the position of her big toe, a
slower and more deliberate gait, and a slightly impaired tactile sensation. All other
neurologic findings are normal. The nurse should interpret that these findings indicate:
a. CN dysfunction.
b. Lesion in the cerebral cortex.
c. Normal changes attributable to aging.
d. Demyelination of nerves attributable to a lesion. - Answers -C
A 70-year-old woman tells the nurse that every time she gets up in the morning or after
she's been sitting, she gets "really dizzy" and feels like she is going to fall over. The
nurse's best response would be:
a. "Have you been extremely tired lately?"
b. "You probably just need to drink more liquids."
c. "I'll refer you for a complete neurologic examination."
d. "You need to get up slowly when you've been lying down or sitting." - Answers -D
During the taking of the health history, a patient tells the nurse that "it feels like the room
is spinning around me." The nurse would document this finding as:
a. Vertigo.
b. Syncope.
c. Dizziness.
d. Seizure activity. - Answers -A
, When taking the health history on a patient with a seizure disorder, the nurse assesses
whether the patient has an aura. Which of these would be the best question for
obtaining this information?
a. "Does your muscle tone seem tense or limp?"
b. "After the seizure, do you spend a lot of time sleeping?"
c. "Do you have any warning sign before your seizure starts?"
d. "Do you experience any color change or incontinence during the seizure?" - Answers
-C
In obtaining a health history on a 74-year-old patient, the nurse notes that he drinks
alcohol daily and that he has noticed a tremor in his hands that affects his ability to hold
things. With this information, what response should the nurse make?
a. "Does your family know you are drinking every day?"
b. "Does the tremor change when you drink alcohol?"
c. "We'll do some tests to see what is causing the tremor."
d. "You really shouldn't drink so much alcohol; it may be causing your tremor." -
Answers -B
A 50-year-old woman is in the clinic for weakness in her left arm and leg that she has
noticed for the past week. The nurse should perform which type of neurologic
examination?
a. Glasgow Coma Scale
b. Neurologic recheck examination
c. Screening neurologic examination
d. Complete neurologic examination - Answers -D
During an assessment of the CNs, the nurse finds the following: asymmetry when the
patient smiles or frowns, uneven lifting of the eyebrows, sagging of the lower eyelids,
and escape of air when the nurse presses against the right puffed cheek. This would
indicate dysfunction of which of these CNs?
a. Motor component of CN IV
b. Motor component of CN VII
c. Motor and sensory components of CN XI
d. Motor component of CN X and sensory component of CN VII - Answers -B
The nurse is testing the function of CN XI. Which statement best describes the
response the nurse should expect if this nerve is intact? The patient:
a. Demonstrates the ability to hear normal conversation.
b. Sticks out the tongue midline without tremors or deviation.
c. Follows an object with his or her eyes without nystagmus or strabismus.
d. Moves the head and shoulders against resistance with equal strength. - Answers -D
Review, Jarvis CH. 18, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25,
26, 27, 28 Questions and Answers
The two parts of the nervous system are the:
a. Motor and sensory.
b. Central and peripheral.
c. Peripheral and autonomic.
d. Hypothalamus and cerebral. - Answers -B
The wife of a 65-year-old man tells the nurse that she is concerned because she has
noticed a change in her husband's personality and ability to understand. He also cries
very easily and becomes angry. The nurse recalls that the cerebral lobe responsible for
these behaviors is the __________ lobe.
a. Frontal
b. Parietal
c. Occipital
d. Temporal - Answers -A
Which statement concerning the areas of the brain is true?
a. The cerebellum is the center for speech and emotions.
b. The hypothalamus controls body temperature and regulates sleep.
c. The basal ganglia are responsible for controlling voluntary movements.
d. Motor pathways of the spinal cord and brainstem synapse in the thalamus. - Answers
-B
The area of the nervous system that is responsible for mediating reflexes is the:
a. Medulla.
b. Cerebellum.
c. Spinal cord.
d. Cerebral cortex - Answers -C
While gathering equipment after an injection, a nurse accidentally received a prick from
an improperly capped needle. To interpret this sensation, which of these areas must be
intact?
,a. Corticospinal tract, medulla, and basal ganglia
b. Pyramidal tract, hypothalamus, and sensory cortex
c. Lateral spinothalamic tract, thalamus, and sensory cortex
d. Anterior spinothalamic tract, basal ganglia, and sensory cortex - Answers -C
A patient with a lack of oxygen to his heart will have pain in his chest and possibly in the
shoulder, arms, or jaw. The nurse knows that the best explanation why this occurs is
which one of these statements?
a. A problem exists with the sensory cortex and its ability to discriminate the location.
b. The lack of oxygen in his heart has resulted in decreased amount of oxygen to the
areas experiencing the pain.
c. The sensory cortex does not have the ability to localize pain in the heart;
consequently, the pain is felt elsewhere.
d. A lesion has developed in the dorsal root, which is preventing the sensation from
being transmitted normally. - Answers -C
The ability that humans have to perform very skilled movements such as writing is
controlled by the:
a. Basal ganglia.
b. Corticospinal tract.
c. Spinothalamic tract.
d. Extrapyramidal tract. - Answers -B
A 30-year-old woman tells the nurse that she has been very unsteady and has had
difficulty in maintaining her balance. Which area of the brain that is related to these
findings would concern the nurse?
a. Thalamus
b. Brainstem
c. Cerebellum
d. Extrapyramidal tract - Answers -C
Which of these statements about the peripheral nervous system is correct?
a. The CNs enter the brain through the spinal cord.
b. Efferent fibers carry sensory input to the central nervous system through the spinal
cord.
c. The peripheral nerves are inside the central nervous system and carry impulses
through their motor fibers.
d. The peripheral nerves carry input to the central nervous system by afferent fibers and
away from the central nervous system by efferent fibers. - Answers -D
A patient has a severed spinal nerve as a result of trauma. Which statement is true in
this situation?
,a. Because there are 31 pairs of spinal nerves, no effect results if only one nerve is
severed.
b. The dermatome served by this nerve will no longer experience any sensation.
c. The adjacent spinal nerves will continue to carry sensations for the dermatome
served by the severed nerve.
d. A severed spinal nerve will only affect motor function of the patient because spinal
nerves have no sensory component. - Answers -C
A 21-year-old patient has a head injury resulting from trauma and is unconscious. There
are no other injuries. During the assessment what would the nurse expect to find when
testing the patient's deep tendon reflexes?
a. Reflexes will be normal.
b. Reflexes cannot be elicited.
c. All reflexes will be diminished but present.
d. Some reflexes will be present, depending on the area of injury. - Answers -A
During an assessment of an 80-year-old patient, the nurse notices the following: an
inability to identify vibrations at her ankle and to identify the position of her big toe, a
slower and more deliberate gait, and a slightly impaired tactile sensation. All other
neurologic findings are normal. The nurse should interpret that these findings indicate:
a. CN dysfunction.
b. Lesion in the cerebral cortex.
c. Normal changes attributable to aging.
d. Demyelination of nerves attributable to a lesion. - Answers -C
A 70-year-old woman tells the nurse that every time she gets up in the morning or after
she's been sitting, she gets "really dizzy" and feels like she is going to fall over. The
nurse's best response would be:
a. "Have you been extremely tired lately?"
b. "You probably just need to drink more liquids."
c. "I'll refer you for a complete neurologic examination."
d. "You need to get up slowly when you've been lying down or sitting." - Answers -D
During the taking of the health history, a patient tells the nurse that "it feels like the room
is spinning around me." The nurse would document this finding as:
a. Vertigo.
b. Syncope.
c. Dizziness.
d. Seizure activity. - Answers -A
, When taking the health history on a patient with a seizure disorder, the nurse assesses
whether the patient has an aura. Which of these would be the best question for
obtaining this information?
a. "Does your muscle tone seem tense or limp?"
b. "After the seizure, do you spend a lot of time sleeping?"
c. "Do you have any warning sign before your seizure starts?"
d. "Do you experience any color change or incontinence during the seizure?" - Answers
-C
In obtaining a health history on a 74-year-old patient, the nurse notes that he drinks
alcohol daily and that he has noticed a tremor in his hands that affects his ability to hold
things. With this information, what response should the nurse make?
a. "Does your family know you are drinking every day?"
b. "Does the tremor change when you drink alcohol?"
c. "We'll do some tests to see what is causing the tremor."
d. "You really shouldn't drink so much alcohol; it may be causing your tremor." -
Answers -B
A 50-year-old woman is in the clinic for weakness in her left arm and leg that she has
noticed for the past week. The nurse should perform which type of neurologic
examination?
a. Glasgow Coma Scale
b. Neurologic recheck examination
c. Screening neurologic examination
d. Complete neurologic examination - Answers -D
During an assessment of the CNs, the nurse finds the following: asymmetry when the
patient smiles or frowns, uneven lifting of the eyebrows, sagging of the lower eyelids,
and escape of air when the nurse presses against the right puffed cheek. This would
indicate dysfunction of which of these CNs?
a. Motor component of CN IV
b. Motor component of CN VII
c. Motor and sensory components of CN XI
d. Motor component of CN X and sensory component of CN VII - Answers -B
The nurse is testing the function of CN XI. Which statement best describes the
response the nurse should expect if this nerve is intact? The patient:
a. Demonstrates the ability to hear normal conversation.
b. Sticks out the tongue midline without tremors or deviation.
c. Follows an object with his or her eyes without nystagmus or strabismus.
d. Moves the head and shoulders against resistance with equal strength. - Answers -D
