ATLS POST TEST MCQ WITH ANSWERS
2026\2027 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS KEY.
1. Which of the following signs is LEAST reliable for diagnosing esophageal
intubation?
a. symmetrical chest wall movement
b. end-tidal CO2 presence by colorimetry
c. bilateral breath sounds
d. oxygen saturation >92%
e. ETT above carina on chest x-ray
2. Which of the following signs the necessitates a definitive airway in severe
trauma patients?
a. fascial lacerations
b. repeated vomiting
c. severe maxillofacial fractures
d. sternal fracture
e. Glasgow Coma Scale score of 12
3. Twenty-seven patients are seriously injured in an aircraft crash at a local
airport. The principles of triage include:
a. establish a triage site within the internal perimeter of the crash site
b. treat only the most severely injured patients first
c. immediately transport all patients to the nearest hospital
d. treat the greatest number of patients in the shortest period of time
e. produce the greatest number of survivors based on available
resources
4. Which of the following statements is correct?
a. Cerebral contusions may coalesce to form an intracerebral hematoma.
b. Epidural hematomas are usually seen in the frontal region.
,c. Subdural hematomas are caused by injury to the middle meningeal
artery.
d. Subdural hematomas typically have a lenticular shape on CT scan.
e. The associated brain damage is more severe in epidural hematomas.
5. An 18-ycar-old male is brought to the emergenc} department after having
been shot.
He has one bullet wound just below the right clavicle and another just
below the costal margin in the right posterior axillary line. His blood
pressure is110/60 mm Hg.
, heart rate is 90 beats per minute, and respiratory rate is 34 breaths per minute.
After ensuring a patent airway and inserting 2 large caliber IVlines., the next
appropriate step is to:
a. obtain a portable chest x-ray
b. administer a bolus of additional IV fluid
c. perform a laparotomy
d. obtain an abdominal CT scan
e. perform diagnostic peritoneal lavage
6. A 47-year-old house painter is brought to the hospital after falling 6 meters
(20 feet) from a ladder and landing straddled on a fence. Examination of
his perineum reveals extensive ecchymosis. There is a blood in the
external urethral meatus. The initial diagnostic study for the evaluation of
the urinary tract in this patient should be:
a. cystoscopy
b. cystography
c. intravenous pyelography
d. CT scan
e. retrograde urethrography
7. Neurogenic shock has all of the following classic characteristics except
which one?
a. hypotension
b. vasodilation
c. bradycardia
d. neurologic deficit
e. narrowed pulse pressure
8. Which one of the following statements is false concerning Rh
isoimmunization in pregnant trauma patients?
a. It occurs in blunt or penetrating abdominal trauma.
b. It is produced by minor degrees of fetomaternal hemorrhage.
Rh immunoglobulin therapy should be administered to pregnant females
who have sustained a gunshot wound to the leg.
c.
d. This is not a problem in traumatized, Rh-positive pregnant patients.
e. Initiation of Rh immunoglobulin therapy does not require proof of
fetomaternal hemorrhage.
2026\2027 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS KEY.
1. Which of the following signs is LEAST reliable for diagnosing esophageal
intubation?
a. symmetrical chest wall movement
b. end-tidal CO2 presence by colorimetry
c. bilateral breath sounds
d. oxygen saturation >92%
e. ETT above carina on chest x-ray
2. Which of the following signs the necessitates a definitive airway in severe
trauma patients?
a. fascial lacerations
b. repeated vomiting
c. severe maxillofacial fractures
d. sternal fracture
e. Glasgow Coma Scale score of 12
3. Twenty-seven patients are seriously injured in an aircraft crash at a local
airport. The principles of triage include:
a. establish a triage site within the internal perimeter of the crash site
b. treat only the most severely injured patients first
c. immediately transport all patients to the nearest hospital
d. treat the greatest number of patients in the shortest period of time
e. produce the greatest number of survivors based on available
resources
4. Which of the following statements is correct?
a. Cerebral contusions may coalesce to form an intracerebral hematoma.
b. Epidural hematomas are usually seen in the frontal region.
,c. Subdural hematomas are caused by injury to the middle meningeal
artery.
d. Subdural hematomas typically have a lenticular shape on CT scan.
e. The associated brain damage is more severe in epidural hematomas.
5. An 18-ycar-old male is brought to the emergenc} department after having
been shot.
He has one bullet wound just below the right clavicle and another just
below the costal margin in the right posterior axillary line. His blood
pressure is110/60 mm Hg.
, heart rate is 90 beats per minute, and respiratory rate is 34 breaths per minute.
After ensuring a patent airway and inserting 2 large caliber IVlines., the next
appropriate step is to:
a. obtain a portable chest x-ray
b. administer a bolus of additional IV fluid
c. perform a laparotomy
d. obtain an abdominal CT scan
e. perform diagnostic peritoneal lavage
6. A 47-year-old house painter is brought to the hospital after falling 6 meters
(20 feet) from a ladder and landing straddled on a fence. Examination of
his perineum reveals extensive ecchymosis. There is a blood in the
external urethral meatus. The initial diagnostic study for the evaluation of
the urinary tract in this patient should be:
a. cystoscopy
b. cystography
c. intravenous pyelography
d. CT scan
e. retrograde urethrography
7. Neurogenic shock has all of the following classic characteristics except
which one?
a. hypotension
b. vasodilation
c. bradycardia
d. neurologic deficit
e. narrowed pulse pressure
8. Which one of the following statements is false concerning Rh
isoimmunization in pregnant trauma patients?
a. It occurs in blunt or penetrating abdominal trauma.
b. It is produced by minor degrees of fetomaternal hemorrhage.
Rh immunoglobulin therapy should be administered to pregnant females
who have sustained a gunshot wound to the leg.
c.
d. This is not a problem in traumatized, Rh-positive pregnant patients.
e. Initiation of Rh immunoglobulin therapy does not require proof of
fetomaternal hemorrhage.
