General Patho/ assessment

Question 1

At the present time, the ratio of caregivers to older people is:

Select one:

a. low.
b. high.
c. adequate.
d. increasing consistently.

Answer 1

a. low.

Question 2

Following retirement, many older people:

Select one:

a. experience a rapid decline in their underlying health and become incapacitated within 12 months.
b. often experience an improvement in their overall health because the stress of working has been eliminated.
c. return to work within 6 months because their retirement pension does not support them adequately.
d. commonly experience decreased self-esteem because they no longer feel useful or productive in society.

Answer 2

d. commonly experience decreased self-esteem because they no longer feel useful or productive in society.

Question 3

Aging is a linear process, which means that:

Select one:

a. the older we get, the faster our bodies decline in function.
b. the rate at which we lose functions does not increase with age.
c. older people exhibit the cumulative results of a longer aging process.
d. older adults experience decreased functions faster than younger adults.

Answer 3

b. the rate at which we lose functions does not increase with age.

Question 4

Which of the following statements regarding aging is correct?

Select one:

a. Although aging causes various anatomic changes, physiologic functions generally remain intact.
b. Health care providers may attribute genuine disease symptoms to age, resulting in inadequate care.
c. All of the tissues and organs in the human body undergo the effects of aging at the same rate.
d. Health care providers typically recognize the normal changes of aging and tend not to render unnecessary care.

Answer 4

b. Health care providers may attribute genuine disease symptoms to age, resulting in inadequate care.

Question 5

The heart hypertrophies with age, MOST likely in response to:

Select one:

a. a progressive increase in preload and chronic myocardial stretching.
b. left-sided heart failure that results in chronic pulmonary hypertension.
c. a chronically increased afterload caused by arteriosclerotic blood vessels.
d. a significant decline in cardiac output due to a reduction in stroke volume.

Answer 5

c. a chronically increased afterload caused by arteriosclerotic blood vessels.

Question 6

An increase in blood pressure that commonly occurs with aging is physiologically exacerbated by:

Select one:

a. a compensatory increase in preload and cardiac ejection fraction.
b. a decrease in stroke volume due to age-induced cardiomyopathy.
c. an overproduction of collagen and decreased quantities of elastin.
d. the patient’s noncompliance with his or her antihypertensive drugs.

Answer 6

c. an overproduction of collagen and decreased quantities of elastin.

Question 7

A decreased number of pacemaker cells in the sinoatrial node would MOST likely contribute to a decline in cardiac output secondary to:

Select one:

a. heart block
b. bradycardia.
c. tachycardia.
d. atrial fibrillation.

Answer 7

b. bradycardia.

Question 8

Decreased elasticity of the lungs and calcification of the costochondral cartilage results in:

Select one:

a. an increase in residual lung volume.
b. a significant increase in vital capacity.
c. a decrease in airway size and resistance.
d. a decrease in the total amount of air in the lungs.

Answer 8

a. an increase in residual lung volume.

Question 9

Elderly patients experience a slower physiologic response to hypoxemia and hypercarbia because of:

Select one:

a. decreased sensitivity to changes in arterial blood content.
b. a chronically elevated partial pressure of carbon dioxide.
c. an increased PaO2 due to a natural increase in respirations.
d. failure of the baroreceptors to detect blood pressure changes.

Answer 9

a. decreased sensitivity to changes in arterial blood content.

Question 10

An elderly person is at increased risk for aspiration, primarily from:

Select one:

a. atrophy of the epiglottis.
b. a decreased ability to swallow.
c. slowing of the ciliary mechanisms.
d. decreased cough and gag reflexes.

Answer 10

d. decreased cough and gag reflexes.

Question 11

Aging kidneys have a decreased glomerular filtration rate, which predisposes an older person to all of the following conditions, EXCEPT:

Select one:

a. hyperkalemia.
b. hypernatremia.
c. profound dehydration.
d. acute volume overload.

Answer 11

c. profound dehydration.

Question 12

When elderly patients are prescribed medications, the risk for drug toxicity increases because of:

Select one:

a. an increase in the glomerular filtration rate.
b. age-related changes in hepatic enzyme systems.
c. the presence of chronic conditions, such as diabetes.
d. an increase in the production of antidiuretic hormone.

Answer 12

b. age-related changes in hepatic enzyme systems.

Question 13

Which of the following may you be the LEAST likely to observe in a 90-year-old patient with a severe infection?

Select one:

a. Fever
b. Weakness
c. Loss of appetite
d. Altered mentation

Answer 13

a. fever

Question 14

When assessing an unresponsive older person’s airway, it is MOST important to remember that:

Select one:

a. delayed gastric emptying increases the risk of aspiration.
b. age-related tooth loss may cause obstruction of the airway.
c. a marked reduction in saliva causes dryness of the oral mucosa.
d. the head should not be extended due to weakened cervical vertebrae.

Answer 14

a. delayed gastric emptying increases the risk of aspiration.

Question 15

Therapeutic doses of certain drugs may reach toxic levels in older people due to deterioration of the:

Select one:

a. liver.
b. spleen.
c. gallbladder.
d. intestinal tract.

Answer 15

a. liver.

Question 16

Aging brings a widespread decrease in bone mass, especially:

Select one:

a. in postmenopausal women.
b. in men over 50 years of age.
c. if the person falls frequently.
d. in the presence of hypertension.

Answer 16

a. in postmenopausal woman.

Question 17

Which of the following central nervous system functions does NOT change as a person ages?

Select one:

a. Postural stability
b. Cognitive speed
c. Memory retrieval
d. Intelligence level

Answer 17

d. Intelligence level

Question 18

When assessing an older person, you should remember that it is common for him or her to:

Select one:

a. slur his or her words.
b. present with hemiparesis.
c. respond slowly to questions.
d. not understand your questions.

Answer 18

c. responds slowly to questions.

Question 19

MOST age-related visual disturbances are the result of:

Select one:

a. diabetic retinopathy.
b. cataracts or glaucoma.
c. macular degeneration.
d. retinal artery occlusion.

Answer 19

b. cataracts or glaucoma.

Question 20

Presbycusis is defined as:

Select one:

a. a progressive loss of hearing, particularly in the low frequencies, which explains why the television is turned up.
b. an acute hearing impairment caused by idiopathic rupture of the tympanic membrane in the middle part of the ear.
c. a degenerative condition in which the person experiences difficulty hearing both low and high frequency sounds.
d. loss of high-frequency sounds and the inability to differentiate a particular sound from background noise.

Answer 20

d. loss of high-frequency sounds and the inability to differentiate a particular sound from the backround noise.

Question 21

Typical signs and symptoms of Ménière disease include all of the following, EXCEPT:

Select one:

a. vertigo.
b. tinnitus.
c. otorrhea.
d. hearing loss.

Answer 21

c. otorrhea.

Question 22

Impaired proprioception predisposes an elderly person to:

Select one:

a. falls.
b. skin tears.
c. depression.
d. hearing loss.

Answer 22

a. falls.

Question 23

Physiologic age-related decreases in skin elasticity are the result of:

Select one:

a. decreased collagen and elastin production.
b. chronic use of corticosteroid medications.
c. slower replenishment of epidermal cells.
d. frequent fungal or viral skin infections.

Answer 23

a. decreased collagen and elastin production.

Question 24

Due to the process of aging, an elderly person commonly experiences:

Select one:

a. increased thirst.
b. moderate hyperglycemia.
c. increased insulin secretion.
d. high fever with a minor illness.

Answer 24

b. moderate hyperglycemia.

Question 25

Failure of the heart’s primary pacemaker and the development of alternate pacemakers in the atria would MOST likely result in:

Select one:

a. junctional rhythms.
b. atrioventricular block.
c. ventricular ectopy.
d. atrial fibrillation.

Answer 25

d. atrial fibrillation.