NURS 623 LATEST 2026 TEST PAPER QUESTIONS AND
ANSWERS RATED A+
✔✔What are s/s of temporal arteritis? - ✔✔Jaw claudication (pain with chewing that is
relieved when stops chewing), unilateral pain, temporal area with scalp tenderness; skin
over artery is indurated, tender, warm, and reddened. Amaurosis fugaz (temporary
blindness), may occur. Low-grade fever and fatigue, occurs sometimes. ESR/sed rate
(often reaches 100 mm/hr or more). CRP elevated >50. Medical Urgency: polymyalgia
rheumatica common in these patients, older adults and elder are more common.
✔✔What are articular bone structures? - ✔✔Includes structures like the synovium,
synovial fluid, articular cartilage, joint capsules, and juxta-articular bone. Articular
disorders may be characterized by deep or diffuse pain, pain or limited ROM on active
and passive movement, swelling, crepitus.
✔✔What are non-articular bone structures? - ✔✔Supportive structures such as tendons,
bursae, muscles, fascia, bone, nerve, overlying skin. Tend to be painful on active but
not passive (assisted) ROM. Seldom demonstrate swelling, crepitus, instability, or
deformity by itself.
✔✔What dx test is most useful in patient who presents with lumbar radiculopathy? -
✔✔The straight leg raise (assesses L5-S1). This is best initial diagnostic because the
most common disc herniation is at L5-S1. Straight leg raise will cause sciatica and
radicular pain.
✔✔In older adults, how can you increase physical activity-things you can encourage or
are there certain underlying factors that would enable a patient to be more successful? -
✔✔Ensure the patient is motivated
✔✔What are s/s of bells palsy? (cranial nerve VII) - ✔✔Facial paralysis with normal
ocular movement and sensation. Loss of taste (dysgeusia). Postauricular pain. Sound
sensitivity (hyperacusis). Heavy feeling in face.
✔✔What are the demographics/people effected by bells palsy? - ✔✔Anyone at any age.
It occurs most often in pregnant women, and people who have diabetes, influenza, a
cold, or another upper respiratory ailment. Bell's palsy affects men and women equally.
It is less common before age 15 or after age 60.
✔✔What is the testing for bells palsy? - ✔✔There's no specific test for it. Your doctor
will look at your face and ask you to move your facial muscles by closing your eyes,
lifting your brow showing your teeth and frowning, among other movements.
✔✔What is the treatment for Bells palsy? - ✔✔Prevent eye injury, acyclovir, Prednisone,
NSAIDs for pain, rest decreased auditory stimulation. Self limiting, recovery in a few
weeks or months.
, ✔✔What are the s/s of Migraine? - ✔✔Often but not always unilateral and tends to have
a throbbing or pulsatile quality. Accompanying features may include nausea, vomiting,
photophobia, or phonophobia during attacks. Can be precipitated by an aura. Triggered
by things like stress, caffeine, weather changes, or food.
✔✔What are the s/s of cluster headaches? - ✔✔Unilateral, often severe headache
attacks and typical accompanying autonomic symptoms. Characterized by attacks of
severe unilateral orbital, supraorbital, or temporal pain accompanied by autonomic
phenomena. Unilateral autonomic symptoms are ipsilateral to the pain and may include
ptosis, miosis, lacrimation, conjunctival injection, rhinorrhea, and nasal congestion.
Attacks usually last 15 to 180 minutes. Can last 2-3 months.
✔✔What is a potential complication of steroid use in a patient with impaired integrity of
bone structure? - ✔✔Increased risk of fx
✔✔Where do the cervical nerves innervate? - ✔✔C1-4: head, neck, diaphragm
C5-8: neck, shoulders, arms, wrists, hands
✔✔What are the s/s of carpal tunnel? - ✔✔Related to compression of the median nerve,
which results in pain, paresthesia, numbness and tingling, and associated weakness in
the hand and wrist that radiate to the thumb, index finger, middle finger, and radial half
of the ring finger.
✔✔What are the s/s of Gout? - ✔✔Form of arthritis characterized by painful flare-ups in
joints of distal extremities.
✔✔What are s/s of medial epicondylitis? - ✔✔Pain on the inside of elbow. Elbow
stiffness, hand and wrist weakness. Tingling sensation or numbness in the fingers,
especially the ring and little fingers. Difficulty moving the elbow, will be pain with wrist
flexion.
✔✔What are s/s of ruptured cervical disc? - ✔✔Can cause neck pain, radiating arm
pain, shoulder pain, and numbness or tingling in the arm or hand. The quality and type
of pain can very from dull, aching, and difficult to localized to sharp, burning, and easy
to pinpoint. Can cause weakness in arm(s).
✔✔In a patient with a new herniated lumbar disc and no red flag symptoms, how do you
manage? - ✔✔May resolve in 3-6 weeks, NSAIDS, short course of oral steroids, pain
management or Epidural steroid injection (ESI). Surgical option if no improvement in 3
months, intolerable dysfunctional pain, neurologic deterioration, or Cauda Equina
syndrome (emergent surgery).
ANSWERS RATED A+
✔✔What are s/s of temporal arteritis? - ✔✔Jaw claudication (pain with chewing that is
relieved when stops chewing), unilateral pain, temporal area with scalp tenderness; skin
over artery is indurated, tender, warm, and reddened. Amaurosis fugaz (temporary
blindness), may occur. Low-grade fever and fatigue, occurs sometimes. ESR/sed rate
(often reaches 100 mm/hr or more). CRP elevated >50. Medical Urgency: polymyalgia
rheumatica common in these patients, older adults and elder are more common.
✔✔What are articular bone structures? - ✔✔Includes structures like the synovium,
synovial fluid, articular cartilage, joint capsules, and juxta-articular bone. Articular
disorders may be characterized by deep or diffuse pain, pain or limited ROM on active
and passive movement, swelling, crepitus.
✔✔What are non-articular bone structures? - ✔✔Supportive structures such as tendons,
bursae, muscles, fascia, bone, nerve, overlying skin. Tend to be painful on active but
not passive (assisted) ROM. Seldom demonstrate swelling, crepitus, instability, or
deformity by itself.
✔✔What dx test is most useful in patient who presents with lumbar radiculopathy? -
✔✔The straight leg raise (assesses L5-S1). This is best initial diagnostic because the
most common disc herniation is at L5-S1. Straight leg raise will cause sciatica and
radicular pain.
✔✔In older adults, how can you increase physical activity-things you can encourage or
are there certain underlying factors that would enable a patient to be more successful? -
✔✔Ensure the patient is motivated
✔✔What are s/s of bells palsy? (cranial nerve VII) - ✔✔Facial paralysis with normal
ocular movement and sensation. Loss of taste (dysgeusia). Postauricular pain. Sound
sensitivity (hyperacusis). Heavy feeling in face.
✔✔What are the demographics/people effected by bells palsy? - ✔✔Anyone at any age.
It occurs most often in pregnant women, and people who have diabetes, influenza, a
cold, or another upper respiratory ailment. Bell's palsy affects men and women equally.
It is less common before age 15 or after age 60.
✔✔What is the testing for bells palsy? - ✔✔There's no specific test for it. Your doctor
will look at your face and ask you to move your facial muscles by closing your eyes,
lifting your brow showing your teeth and frowning, among other movements.
✔✔What is the treatment for Bells palsy? - ✔✔Prevent eye injury, acyclovir, Prednisone,
NSAIDs for pain, rest decreased auditory stimulation. Self limiting, recovery in a few
weeks or months.
, ✔✔What are the s/s of Migraine? - ✔✔Often but not always unilateral and tends to have
a throbbing or pulsatile quality. Accompanying features may include nausea, vomiting,
photophobia, or phonophobia during attacks. Can be precipitated by an aura. Triggered
by things like stress, caffeine, weather changes, or food.
✔✔What are the s/s of cluster headaches? - ✔✔Unilateral, often severe headache
attacks and typical accompanying autonomic symptoms. Characterized by attacks of
severe unilateral orbital, supraorbital, or temporal pain accompanied by autonomic
phenomena. Unilateral autonomic symptoms are ipsilateral to the pain and may include
ptosis, miosis, lacrimation, conjunctival injection, rhinorrhea, and nasal congestion.
Attacks usually last 15 to 180 minutes. Can last 2-3 months.
✔✔What is a potential complication of steroid use in a patient with impaired integrity of
bone structure? - ✔✔Increased risk of fx
✔✔Where do the cervical nerves innervate? - ✔✔C1-4: head, neck, diaphragm
C5-8: neck, shoulders, arms, wrists, hands
✔✔What are the s/s of carpal tunnel? - ✔✔Related to compression of the median nerve,
which results in pain, paresthesia, numbness and tingling, and associated weakness in
the hand and wrist that radiate to the thumb, index finger, middle finger, and radial half
of the ring finger.
✔✔What are the s/s of Gout? - ✔✔Form of arthritis characterized by painful flare-ups in
joints of distal extremities.
✔✔What are s/s of medial epicondylitis? - ✔✔Pain on the inside of elbow. Elbow
stiffness, hand and wrist weakness. Tingling sensation or numbness in the fingers,
especially the ring and little fingers. Difficulty moving the elbow, will be pain with wrist
flexion.
✔✔What are s/s of ruptured cervical disc? - ✔✔Can cause neck pain, radiating arm
pain, shoulder pain, and numbness or tingling in the arm or hand. The quality and type
of pain can very from dull, aching, and difficult to localized to sharp, burning, and easy
to pinpoint. Can cause weakness in arm(s).
✔✔In a patient with a new herniated lumbar disc and no red flag symptoms, how do you
manage? - ✔✔May resolve in 3-6 weeks, NSAIDS, short course of oral steroids, pain
management or Epidural steroid injection (ESI). Surgical option if no improvement in 3
months, intolerable dysfunctional pain, neurologic deterioration, or Cauda Equina
syndrome (emergent surgery).
