TCAR Trauma Nursing Exam: 200
Practice Questions with Rationales for
Post-Resuscitation Care
SECTION 1: BIOMECHANICS OF INJURY (Questions 1-20)
1. Helmets and automobile airbags work because they:
A) Prevent blows to the head
B) Reduce acceleration injuries
C) Increase deceleration speed
D) Add deceleration distance
Answer: B) Reduce acceleration injuries
Rationale: Helmets and airbags reduce the acceleration forces on the head
and body during a crash by increasing the time over which deceleration
occurs. This decreases the peak force transmitted to tissues .
2. Which statement best describes knife wounds? Their velocity is _____,
the temporary cavity _____, and damage _____.
A) Low; depends on knife size; is usually extensive
, B) Low; is insignificant; is limited to structures directly in the object's
path
C) High; will be small; affects structures at distance from wound tract
D) High; may be massive; results in widespread tissue destruction
Answer: B) Low; is insignificant; is limited to structures directly in
object's path
Rationale: Knife wounds are low-velocity injuries. They create minimal
temporary cavitation, and damage is generally confined to tissues directly
in the path of the blade. This is distinct from high-velocity injuries (e.g.,
gunshots) that cause significant cavitation and distant tissue damage .
3. Injury to which body structure is commonly a DELAYED finding in
the blast trauma patient?
A) Heart
B) Bladder
C) Bowel
D) Spleen
Answer: C) Bowel
Rationale: Blast injuries can cause delayed bowel perforation due to the
effects of the pressure wave on gas-filled organs. Bowel injury may not
present immediately, making it a concern in the post-resuscitation
monitoring phase .
,4. The biomechanics of trauma help the nurse:
A) Diagnose specific organ injuries definitively
B) Anticipate potential injuries based on the mechanism
C) Determine the need for surgical intervention
D) Assign a trauma score on arrival
Answer: B) Anticipate potential injuries based on the mechanism
Rationale: Understanding biomechanics allows the trauma nurse to
anticipate specific wounds and complications based on the mechanism of
injury information, guiding assessment priorities .
5. A patient falls from a height and lands on their feet. Which injury
pattern should the nurse anticipate?
A) Cervical spine fracture
B) Calcaneus fracture, lumbar spine fracture
C) Pelvic fracture, splenic laceration
D) Femur fracture, pulmonary contusion
Answer: B) Calcaneus fracture, lumbar spine fracture
Rationale: Axial loading from a fall onto the feet transmits force upward
through the lower extremities to the spine. This commonly results in
calcaneus (heel bone) fractures and compression fractures of the lumbar
spine.
, 6. A restrained driver in a head-on collision has a steering wheel
deformity. Which injuries should be anticipated?
A) Lower extremity fractures
B) Sternal fracture, cardiac contusion, pulmonary contusion
C) Cervical spine hyperextension
D) Pelvic ring disruption
Answer: B) Sternal fracture, cardiac contusion, pulmonary contusion
Rationale: Steering wheel deformity indicates significant chest impact. This
mechanism can cause sternal fractures, myocardial contusions, and
pulmonary contusions as the chest strikes the steering wheel.
7. The temporary cavity created by a high-velocity projectile:
A) Is always larger than the permanent cavity
B) Causes tissue damage through stretching and tearing
C) Is not clinically significant
D) Only affects blood vessels
Answer: B) Causes tissue damage through stretching and tearing
Rationale: High-velocity projectiles create a temporary cavity as tissue is
displaced radially. This cavitation stretches and tears tissues, causing
damage beyond the permanent wound tract.
Practice Questions with Rationales for
Post-Resuscitation Care
SECTION 1: BIOMECHANICS OF INJURY (Questions 1-20)
1. Helmets and automobile airbags work because they:
A) Prevent blows to the head
B) Reduce acceleration injuries
C) Increase deceleration speed
D) Add deceleration distance
Answer: B) Reduce acceleration injuries
Rationale: Helmets and airbags reduce the acceleration forces on the head
and body during a crash by increasing the time over which deceleration
occurs. This decreases the peak force transmitted to tissues .
2. Which statement best describes knife wounds? Their velocity is _____,
the temporary cavity _____, and damage _____.
A) Low; depends on knife size; is usually extensive
, B) Low; is insignificant; is limited to structures directly in the object's
path
C) High; will be small; affects structures at distance from wound tract
D) High; may be massive; results in widespread tissue destruction
Answer: B) Low; is insignificant; is limited to structures directly in
object's path
Rationale: Knife wounds are low-velocity injuries. They create minimal
temporary cavitation, and damage is generally confined to tissues directly
in the path of the blade. This is distinct from high-velocity injuries (e.g.,
gunshots) that cause significant cavitation and distant tissue damage .
3. Injury to which body structure is commonly a DELAYED finding in
the blast trauma patient?
A) Heart
B) Bladder
C) Bowel
D) Spleen
Answer: C) Bowel
Rationale: Blast injuries can cause delayed bowel perforation due to the
effects of the pressure wave on gas-filled organs. Bowel injury may not
present immediately, making it a concern in the post-resuscitation
monitoring phase .
,4. The biomechanics of trauma help the nurse:
A) Diagnose specific organ injuries definitively
B) Anticipate potential injuries based on the mechanism
C) Determine the need for surgical intervention
D) Assign a trauma score on arrival
Answer: B) Anticipate potential injuries based on the mechanism
Rationale: Understanding biomechanics allows the trauma nurse to
anticipate specific wounds and complications based on the mechanism of
injury information, guiding assessment priorities .
5. A patient falls from a height and lands on their feet. Which injury
pattern should the nurse anticipate?
A) Cervical spine fracture
B) Calcaneus fracture, lumbar spine fracture
C) Pelvic fracture, splenic laceration
D) Femur fracture, pulmonary contusion
Answer: B) Calcaneus fracture, lumbar spine fracture
Rationale: Axial loading from a fall onto the feet transmits force upward
through the lower extremities to the spine. This commonly results in
calcaneus (heel bone) fractures and compression fractures of the lumbar
spine.
, 6. A restrained driver in a head-on collision has a steering wheel
deformity. Which injuries should be anticipated?
A) Lower extremity fractures
B) Sternal fracture, cardiac contusion, pulmonary contusion
C) Cervical spine hyperextension
D) Pelvic ring disruption
Answer: B) Sternal fracture, cardiac contusion, pulmonary contusion
Rationale: Steering wheel deformity indicates significant chest impact. This
mechanism can cause sternal fractures, myocardial contusions, and
pulmonary contusions as the chest strikes the steering wheel.
7. The temporary cavity created by a high-velocity projectile:
A) Is always larger than the permanent cavity
B) Causes tissue damage through stretching and tearing
C) Is not clinically significant
D) Only affects blood vessels
Answer: B) Causes tissue damage through stretching and tearing
Rationale: High-velocity projectiles create a temporary cavity as tissue is
displaced radially. This cavitation stretches and tears tissues, causing
damage beyond the permanent wound tract.
