Deck 14: Concepts of Neurologic Dysfunction

Question 1

The breathing pattern that reflects respirations based primarily on CO₂ levels in the blood is:

A) Cheyne-Stokes.
B) ataxic.
C) central neurogenic.
D) normal.

Answer 1

Cheyne-Stokes.

Question 2

An alcoholic checked into a rehabilitation center. He experiences delirium, inability to concentrate, and is easily distracted. From which of the following is he most likely suffering?

A) Acute confusional state
B) Echolalia
C) Dementia
D) Dysphagia

Answer 2

Acute confusional state

Question 3

The cognitive disorder that results in the loss of memory of events that occurred before a head injury is:

A) selective memory deficit.
B) anterograde amnesia.
C) retrograde amnesia.
D) executive memory deficit.

Answer 3

retrograde amnesia.

Question 4

Arousal is mediated by the:

A) cerebral cortex.
B) medulla oblongata.
C) reticular activating system.
D) cingulate gyrus.

Question 5

A 45-year-old female presents to the ER complaining of vomiting. A CT scan of the brain reveals a mass in the:

A) skull fractures.
B) the thalamus.
C) medulla oblongata.
D) the frontal lobe.

Question 6

A 10-year-old female was brought to the ER following a sudden onset of convulsions. The physicians think that she experienced an explosive, disorderly discharge of cerebral neurons referred to as:

A) reflex.
B) seizure.
C) inattentiveness.
D) brain death.

Question 7

A peculiar sensation that immediately precedes a seizure is called a(n):

A) prodroma.
B) agnosia.
C) spasm.
D) aura.

Question 8

A 20-year-old male suffers a severe closed head injury in a motor vehicle accident. He remains in a vegetative state 1 month after the accident. Which of the following structures is most likely damaged?

A) Cerebral cortex
B) Brain stem
C) Spinal cord
D) Cerebellum

Question 9

Neural networks basic to cognitive functions include:

A) attentional networks.
B) memory and language networks.
C) affective systems.
D) sensory and motor systems.

Question 10

A 75-year-old female suffers a stroke and now has impaired comprehension and production of language. This condition is most likely caused by occlusion of the:

A) anterior communicating artery.
B) posterior communicating artery.
C) circle of Willis.
D) middle cerebral artery.

Question 11

A 65-year-old male recently suffered a cerebral vascular accident. He is now unable to recognize and identify objects by touch because of injury to the sensory cortex. This condition is a form of:

A) hypomimesis.
B) agnosia.
C) dysphasia.
D) agraphia.

Question 12

When thought content and arousal level are intact but a patient cannot communicate, the patient has:

A) cerebral death.
B) locked-in syndrome.
C) dysphagia.
D) cerebellar motor syndrome.

Question 13

A 20-year-old male was at the supermarket when he fell to the ground. Bystanders reported that he lost consciousness and his body tensed up then relaxed, then tensed and relaxed several times. He most likely was experiencing a(n):

A) partial seizure.
B) absence seizure.
C) myoclonic seizure.
D) tonic-clonic seizure.

Question 14

Dilated fixed pupils can be caused by:

A) brain stem hypoxia.
B) cerebral contusions.
C) compression of the optic nerve.
D) spinal shock.

Question 15

A patient with a history of a motor vehicle accident presents for rehabilitation. He appears to be confused and complains of an inability to remember. Which of the following is most likely impaired?

A) Domain-independent declarative memory
B) Domain-specific declarative memory
C) Image processing
D) Selective attention

Question 16

A 50-year-old male suffers a severe head injury when his motorcycle hits a tree. His breathing becomes deep and rapid, but with normal pattern. This condition is called:

A) gasping.
B) ataxic breathing.
C) apneusis.
D) central neurogenic hyperventilation.

Question 17

A 30-year-old female had a seizure that started with her fingers and progressive1y spread up her arm and then extended to her leg. This condition is known as:

A) myoclonic seizure.
B) tonic-clonic seizure.
C) focal motor seizure.
D) atonic seizure.

Question 18

A teenage boy sustains a severe closed head injury following an ATV accident. He is in a state of deep sleep that requires vigorous stimulation to elicit eye opening. Which of the following describes his condition?

A) Confusion
B) Coma
C) Obtundation
D) Stupor

Question 19

For legal purposes, brain death is defined as:

A) cessation of brain function.
B) lack of cortical function.
C) a vegetative state.
D) irreversible cessation of all brain function.

Question 20

A 16-year-old male took a recreational drug that altered his level of arousal. Physical exam revealed an absent Babinski sign, equal and reactive pupils, and roving eye movements. Which of the following is the most likely diagnosis?

A) Psychogenic arousal alteration
B) Metabolically induced coma
C) Structurally induced coma
D) Structural arousal alteration

Question 21

A 20-year-old male is admitted to the neuro critical care unit with a severe closed head injury. When an intraventricular catheter is inserted, the intracranial pressure is recorded at 24 mm Hg. This reading is:

A) higher than normal.
B) lower than normal.
C) normal.
D) borderline.

Question 22

Vasogenic edema is clinically important because:

A) it usually has an infectious cause.
B) the blood-brain barrier is disrupted.
C) ICP is higher than in other forms of cerebral edema.
D) it always causes herniation.

Question 23

A 70-year-old female is being closely monitored in the neuro critical care unit for a severe closed head injury. After 48 hours, her condition begins to deteriorate. Her pupils are small and sluggish, pulse pressure is widening, and she is bradycardic. These clinical findings are evidence of what stage of intracranial hypertension?

A) Stage 1
B) Stage 2
C) Stage 3
D) Stage 4

Question 24

Cerebral edema is an accumulation of fluid in the:

A) brain ventricles.
B) brain tissue.
C) subarachnoid space.
D) neuroglia.

Question 25

Dementia is manifested by:

A) violent behavior.
B) hyperactivity.
C) depression.
D) loss of recent and remote memory.

Question 26

A 51-year-old male is admitted to the neuro critical care unit with a severe closed head injury. All four extremities are in rigid extension, his forearm is hyperpronated, and his legs are in plantar extension. This condition is known as:

A) decorticate posturing.
B) decerebrate posturing.
C) caloric posturing.
D) excitation posturing.

Question 27

A compensatory alteration in the diameter of cerebral blood vessels in response to increased intracranial pressure is called:

A) herniation.
B) vasodilation.
C) autoregulation.
D) amyotrophy.

Question 28

Spinal shock is characterized by:

A) loss of voluntary motor function with preservation of reflexes.
B) cessation of spinal cord function below the lesion.
C) loss of spinal cord function at the level of the lesion only.
D) temporary loss of spinal cord function above the lesion.

Question 29

A decrease in cerebral perfusion pressure is related to which of the following changes?

A) Increase in arterial blood pressure
B) Increase in cerebral blood flow
C) Increase in intracranial pressure
D) Cerebral artery vasodilation

Question 30

An infant is diagnosed with noncommunicating hydrocephalus. An immediate concern for this patient is:

A) metabolic edema.
B) interstitial edema.
C) vasogenic edema.
D) ischemic edema.

Question 31

A 15-year-old female is admitted to the intensive care unit with a severe closed head injury. This diagnosis puts her at risk for:

A) cerebral edema.
B) metabolic coma.
C) dysphagia.
D) echolalia.

Question 32

A 40-year-old male complains of abnormal movement and progressive dysfunction of intellectual and thought processes. He is experiencing movement problems that begin in the face and arms and eventually affect the entire body. The most likely diagnosis is:

A) tardive dyskinesia.
B) Huntington disease.
C) hypokinesia.
D) Alzheimer disease.

Question 33

Hydrocephalus in adults is most often caused by:

A) overproduction of CSF.
B) intercellular edema.
C) elevated arterial blood pressure.
D) defective CSF reabsorption.

Question 34

A _____ is also known as a senile gait.

A) basal ganglion gait
B) cerebellar gait
C) supraganglion gait
D) scissors gait

Question 35

A 16-year-old male fell off the bed of a pickup truck and hit his forehead on the road. He now has resistance to passive movement that varies proportionally with the force applied. He is most likely suffering from:

A) spasticity.
B) gegenhalten.
C) rigidity.
D) dystonia.

Question 36

A disorder that causes excessive movement is:

A) tachykinesia.
B) akinesia.
C) hyperkinesia.
D) dyskinesia.

Question 37

A direct consequence of increased intracranial pressure is:

A) brain tissue hypoxia.
B) intracranial hypotension.
C) ventricular swelling.
D) expansion of the cranial vault.

Question 38

Paralysis of the lower extremities is called:

A) paraplegia.
B) quadriplegia.
C) infraparaplegia.
D) paresthesia.