APPLIED PATHOPHYSIOLOGY
CONTINUATION OF CHAPTER 1
COMBINED WITH FULL REVISED
QUESTIONS AND ACCURATE ANSWERS
The patient overhears the pathologist talking with the primary care physician about 'morphologic
changes of the disease process.' The patient asks the nurse what the term 'morphologic changes' means.
What is the nurse's best response? - Correct Answer: 'That term describes changes the body undergoes
due to a disease'
Rationale: Morphology refers to the fundamental structure or form of cells or tissues. Morphologic
changes is the term for the gross anatomic and microscopic changes that are characteristic of a disease.
Which information is important for the nurse to understand about the basis of disease? - Correct
Answer: It affects single cells and cells of a specific tissue.
Rationale: Because most diseases begin at the cellular level, understanding of cell function is crucial to
understanding the disease process. Some diseases affect the cells of a single organ, others affect the
cells of a particular tissue type, and still others affect the cells of the entire organism.
The nurse knows that understanding the etiologic factors of a disease is critical for healthcare providers
to understand for what reason? - Correct Answer: In order to prevent disease, it is important to
understand the agents and factors causing disease and how these agents and factors affect the human
organism and its organs systems.
Rationale: Causes of disease are known as etiologic factors and include a wide and varied group of
agents and factors. Recognized etiologic factors are biologic agents (e.g., bacteria, viruses); physical
forces (e.g., trauma, burns, radiation); chemical agents (e.g., poisons, alcohol); and nutritional excesses
or deficits. At the molecular level, it is important to distinguish between abnormal molecules and
molecules that cause disease. Most disease-causing agents are nonspecific, and many different agents
can cause disease of a single organ. A single agent or traumatic event can, however, lead to disease of a
number of organs or systems.
,The nurse is attending a conference covering various perspectives and patterns of disease across the
United States and the world. Why is this information important for nurses to know? - Correct Answer:
Diseases traverse continents and pose a threat to populations throughout the world.
Rationale: The health of individuals is closely linked to the health of the community and broader
populations. The ability to traverse continents in short periods of time leads to epidemics and
pandemics, as seen with COVID-19. Diseases that once were confined to limited areas of the world now
pose a threat to populations throughout the world.
Breast cancer screening programs are an example of primary prevention of disease.
A. True
B. False - Correct Answer: B. False
Rationale:
The origin and development of disease is defined as _______________. - Correct Answer: Pathogenesis
___________ prevention of disease is aimed at keeping diseases from occurring in the first place. -
Correct Answer: Primary
Incidence is the number of __________ cases arising in a given population during a specified time. -
Correct Answer: new
_________ is the study of mechanisms of disease. - Correct Answer: Pathophysiology
If a patient inadvertently experiences a complication as a result of a medical procedure, that is an
example of an iatrogenic disease.
A. True
B. False - Correct Answer: A. True
, ____________ is the study of disease occurrence in human populations. - Correct Answer: Epidemiology
A patient telling their provider they feel warm would be an example of a sign, while a thermometer
reading an elevated body temperature of 39.2 degrees Celsius is a symptom.
A. True
B. False - Correct Answer: B. False
Prevalence is the number of new cases of a disease in a population in a given time.
A. True
B. False - Correct Answer: B. False
Health, the perceived wholeness of body, mind, and spirit, and illness, a state that results in suffering or
distress, exist on a dynamic continuum that can change over time.
A. True
B. False - Correct Answer: A. True
There are three fundamental types of prevention used in health care: primary, secondary, and tertiary.
Which statement accurately describes secondary prevention?
A. Secondary prevention goes beyond treating the problem with which the person presents.
B. Secondary prevention takes place within health care systems and involves the services of a number of
different types of health care professionals.
C. Secondary prevention is often accomplished outside the health care system at the community level.
D. Secondary prevention detects disease early, and most is done in clinical settings. - Correct Answer: D.
Secondary prevention detects disease early, and most is done in clinical settings.
CONTINUATION OF CHAPTER 1
COMBINED WITH FULL REVISED
QUESTIONS AND ACCURATE ANSWERS
The patient overhears the pathologist talking with the primary care physician about 'morphologic
changes of the disease process.' The patient asks the nurse what the term 'morphologic changes' means.
What is the nurse's best response? - Correct Answer: 'That term describes changes the body undergoes
due to a disease'
Rationale: Morphology refers to the fundamental structure or form of cells or tissues. Morphologic
changes is the term for the gross anatomic and microscopic changes that are characteristic of a disease.
Which information is important for the nurse to understand about the basis of disease? - Correct
Answer: It affects single cells and cells of a specific tissue.
Rationale: Because most diseases begin at the cellular level, understanding of cell function is crucial to
understanding the disease process. Some diseases affect the cells of a single organ, others affect the
cells of a particular tissue type, and still others affect the cells of the entire organism.
The nurse knows that understanding the etiologic factors of a disease is critical for healthcare providers
to understand for what reason? - Correct Answer: In order to prevent disease, it is important to
understand the agents and factors causing disease and how these agents and factors affect the human
organism and its organs systems.
Rationale: Causes of disease are known as etiologic factors and include a wide and varied group of
agents and factors. Recognized etiologic factors are biologic agents (e.g., bacteria, viruses); physical
forces (e.g., trauma, burns, radiation); chemical agents (e.g., poisons, alcohol); and nutritional excesses
or deficits. At the molecular level, it is important to distinguish between abnormal molecules and
molecules that cause disease. Most disease-causing agents are nonspecific, and many different agents
can cause disease of a single organ. A single agent or traumatic event can, however, lead to disease of a
number of organs or systems.
,The nurse is attending a conference covering various perspectives and patterns of disease across the
United States and the world. Why is this information important for nurses to know? - Correct Answer:
Diseases traverse continents and pose a threat to populations throughout the world.
Rationale: The health of individuals is closely linked to the health of the community and broader
populations. The ability to traverse continents in short periods of time leads to epidemics and
pandemics, as seen with COVID-19. Diseases that once were confined to limited areas of the world now
pose a threat to populations throughout the world.
Breast cancer screening programs are an example of primary prevention of disease.
A. True
B. False - Correct Answer: B. False
Rationale:
The origin and development of disease is defined as _______________. - Correct Answer: Pathogenesis
___________ prevention of disease is aimed at keeping diseases from occurring in the first place. -
Correct Answer: Primary
Incidence is the number of __________ cases arising in a given population during a specified time. -
Correct Answer: new
_________ is the study of mechanisms of disease. - Correct Answer: Pathophysiology
If a patient inadvertently experiences a complication as a result of a medical procedure, that is an
example of an iatrogenic disease.
A. True
B. False - Correct Answer: A. True
, ____________ is the study of disease occurrence in human populations. - Correct Answer: Epidemiology
A patient telling their provider they feel warm would be an example of a sign, while a thermometer
reading an elevated body temperature of 39.2 degrees Celsius is a symptom.
A. True
B. False - Correct Answer: B. False
Prevalence is the number of new cases of a disease in a population in a given time.
A. True
B. False - Correct Answer: B. False
Health, the perceived wholeness of body, mind, and spirit, and illness, a state that results in suffering or
distress, exist on a dynamic continuum that can change over time.
A. True
B. False - Correct Answer: A. True
There are three fundamental types of prevention used in health care: primary, secondary, and tertiary.
Which statement accurately describes secondary prevention?
A. Secondary prevention goes beyond treating the problem with which the person presents.
B. Secondary prevention takes place within health care systems and involves the services of a number of
different types of health care professionals.
C. Secondary prevention is often accomplished outside the health care system at the community level.
D. Secondary prevention detects disease early, and most is done in clinical settings. - Correct Answer: D.
Secondary prevention detects disease early, and most is done in clinical settings.
