Multiple Choice Questions

Test your understanding with these multiple choice questions:

1. What is the difference between arteriosclerosis and atherosclerosis?

Arteriosclerosis: Arterial wall thickening and hardening as collagen and hyaline cartilage replaces muscle.

Atherosclerosis: The deposition of a fatty substance called plaque on the inner walls of the arteries.

2. The placement of balloon to compress atherosclerosis and widen an artery is known as ______.

a. cardiac bypass

b. endarterectomy

c. pericardiocentesis

d. angioplasty

Ans: D

Bypass involves surgery to use a graft to divert blood away from the blocked artery; endarterectomy is surgical removal of the blockage. A pericardiocentesis drains fluid from the sac of the heart during a medical emergency.

3. What is the primary aim of treatment for shock?

a. commence IV fluids

b. administer oxygen

c. find and treat the cause

d. attach monitoring

Ans: C

Although all these are important, they provide no treatment to the patient unless the cause of the shock is found and removed/managed.

4. Complete the missing words from the following statement:

An ______ stroke occurs due to a partial or full occlusion of an artery. This can be caused by a ______, a clot formed as a result of damage to an artery as a result of atherosclerosis. Sometimes this clot can break away from the artery and block blood flow in another part of the artery, which is known as an ______. A rupture is a blood vessel causing bleeding in the tissue of the brain known as a ______ stroke and is often due to an aneurysm.

Ans: ischaemic; thrombus; embolus; haemorrhagic

5. When a person has had a stroke, and struggles to understand the meaning of spoken words, what type of aphasia is present?

a. anomic

b. primary progressive

c. Wernicke’s

d. Broca’s

Ans: C

6. Which acute coronary syndrome exists when there is usually a complete obstruction of the coronary artery?

a. STEMI

b. NSTEMI

c. unstable angina

d. angina

Ans: A

A full obstruction of a coronary blood vessel normally results in an ST-Segment Elevation (STEMI) on the ECG. A partial obstruction normally does not show this, a Non-STEMI (NSTEMI).

7. Which blood test is most sensitive for the diagnosis of a myocardial infarction?

a. creatinine kinase

b. troponin

c. lactate

d. diagnosis relies on the ECG only

Ans: B

Lactate used to be the only measurement to test for MI but is unreliable is it reflects damage to all muscles. Creatinine kinase and troponin are specific to the heart muscle, but Troponin reaches peak concentration before creatinine.

8. Reduced blood flow in the coronary arteries which is insufficient to block flow but causes spasm and pain on exertion is known as ______.

a. angina

b. unstable angina

c. STEMI

d. NSTEMI

Ans: A

Unstable angina, STEMI and NSTEMI occur when blockage is more severe and normally permanent, occurring at rest.

9. Reduced blood flow in the arteries of the brain which is insufficient to block flow but causes stroke symptoms which resolve rapidly is called ______.

a. haemorrhagic stroke

b. transient ischaemic attack

c. peripheral artery disease

d. unstable angina

Ans: B