PHTLS Exam 2026/2027 | 60+ Questions & Correct Answers | XABCDE, Airway, Shock, Chest Trauma, Hemorrhage & Burns

This comprehensive PHTLS Exam 2026/2027 study resource contains 60+ exam questions, answers, definitions, and trauma-care concepts across 17 pages, providing focused preparation for Prehospital Trauma Life Support (PHTLS) assessment and review. The document concentrates on high-yield prehospital trauma topics including XABCDE assessment, airway management, ventilation, hemorrhage control, shock, chest trauma, traumatic brain injury, spinal considerations, burn assessment and treatment, pediatric and geriatric trauma, vascular access, pharmacology, and emergency patient history. The material combines direct question-and-answer review with concise definitions designed to reinforce rapid clinical recognition and decision-making. A major portion of the document focuses on advanced airway management and ventilation in trauma patients. Students review orotracheal and nasotracheal intubation, rapid-sequence intubation (RSI), delayed-sequence intubation, surgical cricothyrotomy, agonal respirations, minute ventilation, tidal volume, bag-mask ventilation, oropharyngeal airways, nasopharyngeal airways, supraglottic devices such as the King airway and i-gel, and methods of establishing a definitive airway while limiting cervical-spine movement. The resource also reinforces the jaw-thrust maneuver for opening the airway when head or neck trauma is suspected. The exam gives substantial attention to thoracic trauma and respiratory compromise. Students distinguish simple, open, and tension pneumothorax and review the progressive intrathoracic pressure associated with tension physiology. Other topics include sucking chest wounds, pulmonary contusions, flail chest, paradoxical chest-wall movement, pain control, ventilatory support, monitoring, and needle decompression. These concepts help learners differentiate potentially life-threatening chest injuries and understand why respiratory status must be continually reassessed during prehospital trauma management. Another high-value section addresses hemorrhage, shock, and XABCDE trauma priorities. The document defines the sequence as catastrophic external hemorrhage control, airway with cervical-spine considerations, breathing, circulation, disability, and exposure/environment. Questions review direct pressure, tourniquet application, additional tourniquets when bleeding remains uncontrolled, traumatic amputation, tranexamic acid (TXA), intraosseous access, hypovolemic shock, distributive shock, cardiogenic shock, and neurogenic shock. Clinical signs such as hypotension, weak pulses, altered consciousness, delayed capillary refill, cool clammy skin, and the comparatively warm, dry skin associated with neurogenic shock are also discussed. The study material also covers neurological and musculoskeletal trauma, including Cushing's triad, brainstem herniation, cervical-spine protection, seizure management, fractures, extremity perfusion, pediatric airway differences, the relative pliability of children's bones, and increased skeletal fragility in older adults. The Cushing response is presented through the classic combination of hypertension, bradycardia, and abnormal/slow respirations, an important finding when reviewing severe traumatic brain injury and rising intracranial pressure. A detailed section is devoted to burn trauma and prehospital burn management. Students review superficial, partial-thickness, full-thickness, and subdermal burns; the zones of coagulation, stasis, and hyperemia; smoke inhalation; circumferential burns; escharotomy; fluid replacement; intraosseous access; pain management with fentanyl or morphine; and initial wound care. The document discusses cooling an acute thermal burn with copious room-temperature water, avoiding ice because of additional tissue injury, using dry sterile coverings before transport, and the Rule of Tens as an approach to estimating initial fluid requirements. The final pages reinforce airway adjunct selection, pharmacology, and patient history. Students review appropriate sizing and placement of nasopharyngeal airways, the purpose and insertion of oropharyngeal airways, bag-mask ventilation, supraglottic devices, surgical airway indications, ketamine, lorazepam, analgesics used in burn care, and the SAMPLE history: Signs/Symptoms, Allergies, Medications, Past Medical History, Last Oral Intake, and Events Leading Up. Together, these subjects make the resource useful for both written PHTLS examination review and reinforcement of trauma-management terminology. For authoritative academic reference, students should cross-check this material with Prehospital Trauma Life Support (PHTLS), 9th Edition, published by Jones & Bartlett Learning in cooperation with the National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians (NAEMT) and the American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma. Current PHTLS course materials, local EMS protocols, medical direction, and current trauma guidelines should take precedence because the uploaded notes contain some simplified statements and wording that may not accurately reflect current clinical practice. Relevant Students: This document is relevant to PHTLS students, NAEMT PHTLS course participants, EMT students, Advanced EMT candidates, paramedic students, EMS professionals, prehospital clinicians, emergency medical responders, firefighters, flight and critical-care transport personnel, military medics, tactical medical personnel, emergency nursing students, trauma-care trainees, and healthcare professionals preparing for prehospital trauma examinations or continuing education. 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