Chapter 24: Neurologic System
Physical Examination and Health Assessment, 8th Edition by
Carolyn Jarvis
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. The two parts of thenervous system are the:
a. Motor and sensory.
b. Central and peripheral.
c. Peripheral and autonomic.
d. Hypothalamus and cerebral.
ANS: B
The nervous system can be divided into two partscentral and peripheral. thecentral
nervous system includes thebrain and spinal cord. theperipheral nervous system
includes the12 pairs of cranial nerves (CNs), the31 pairs of spinal nerves, and all
of their branches.
DIF: Cognitive Level: Remembering (Knowledge)
MSC: Client Needs: General
2. The wife of a 65-year-old man tells thenurse that she is concerned because she has
noticed a change in her husbands personality and ability to understand. He also cries very
easily and becomes angry. thenurse recalls that thecerebral lobe responsible for these
behaviors is the lobe.
a. Frontal
b. Parietal
c. Occipital
d. Temporal
ANS: A
The frontal lobe has areas responsible for personality, behavior, emotions, and
intellectual function.
theparietal lobe has areas responsible for sensation; theoccipital lobe is
responsible for visual reception; and thetemporal lobe is responsible for hearing,
taste, and smell.
DIF: Cognitive Level: Understanding (Comprehension)
MSC: Client Needs: Physiologic Integrity: Physiologic Adaptation
3. Which statement concerning theareas of thebrain istrue?
a. The cerebellum is thecenter 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 thespinal cord and brainstem synapse in thethalamus.
ANS: B
The hypothalamus is a vital area with many important functions: body
temperature controller, sleep center, anterior and posterior pituitary gland
regulator, and coordinator of autonomic nervous system activity and emotional
status. thecerebellum controls motor coordination, equilibrium, and balance.
thebasal ganglia control autonomic movements of thebody. themotor pathways of
thespinal cord synapse in various areas of the spinal cord, not in thethalamus.
DIF: Cognitive Level: Understanding (Comprehension)
MSC: Client Needs: General
4. The area of thenervous system that is responsible for mediating reflexes is the:
a. Medulla.
b. Cerebellum.
c. Spinal cord.
d. Cerebral cortex.
ANS: C
The spinal cord is themain highway for ascending and descending fiber tracts that
connect thebrain to thespinal nerves; it is responsible for mediating reflexes.
DIF: Cognitive Level: Remembering (Knowledge)
MSC: Client Needs: General
5. 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
ANS: C
The spinothalamic tract contains sensory fibers that transmit thesensations of pain,
temperature, and crude or light touch. Fibers carrying pain and temperature
sensations ascend thelateral spinothalamic tract, whereas thesensations of crude
touch form theanterior spinothalamic tract. At thethalamus, thefibers synapse with
another sensory neuron, which carries themessage to thesensory cortex for full
interpretation. theother options are not correct.
DIF: Cognitive Level: Applying (Application)
MSC: Client Needs: General
, 6. A patient with a lack of oxygen to his heart will have pain in his chest and possibly in
theshoulder, arms, or jaw. thenurse knows that thebest explanation why this occurs is
which one of these statements?
a. A problem exists with thesensory cortex and its ability to discriminate thelocation.
b. The lack of oxygen in his heart has resulted in decreased amount of oxygen to
theareas experiencing thepain.
c. The sensory cortex does not have theability to localize pain in theheart;
consequently, thepain is felt elsewhere.
d. A lesion has developed in thedorsal root, which is preventing thesensation from
being transmitted normally.
ANS: C
The sensory cortex is arranged in a specific pattern, forming a corresponding map
of thebody. Pain in theright hand is perceived at a specific spot on themap. Some
organs, such as theheart, liver, and spleen, are absent from thebrain map. Pain
originating in these organs is referred because no felt image exists in which to
have pain. Pain is felt by proxy, that is, by another body part that does have a felt
image. theother responses are not correct explanations.
DIF: Cognitive Level: Understanding (Comprehension)
MSC: Client Needs: Physiologic Integrity: Basic Care and Comfort
7. 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.
ANS: B
Corticospinal fibers mediate voluntary movement, particularly very skilled,
discrete, and purposeful movements, such as writing. thecorticospinal tract, also
known as thepyramidal tract, is a newer, higher motor system that humans have
that permits very skilled and purposeful movements. theother responses are not
related to skilled movements.
DIF: Cognitive Level: Understanding (Comprehension)
MSC: Client Needs: General
8. A 30-year-old woman tells thenurse that she has been very unsteady and has had
difficulty in maintaining her balance. Which area of thebrain that is related to these
findings would concern thenurse?
a. Thalamus
b. Brainstem
c. Cerebellum
d. Extrapyramidal tract
