UNDERSTANDING MEDICAL
SURGICAL NURSING FINAL PAPER
ACTUAL EXAM QUESTIONS WITH
CORRECT ANSWERS
◉ debridement. Answer: The removal of foreign material and
contaminated and devitalized tissues from or adjacent to a traumatic
or infected area until surrounding healthy tissue is exposed.
◉ decerebrate. Answer: Abnormal extension posture indicating
brainstem damage.
◉ decorticate. Answer: Abnormal flexion posture indicating cerebral
damage.
◉ defibrillation. Answer: Use of an electrical device that applies
countershock to the heart through electrodes placed on the chest
wall to stop fibrillation of the heart.
◉ degeneration. Answer: Deterioration.
◉ dehiscence. Answer: A splitting open (i.e., rupture) of an incision.
,◉ dehydration. Answer: A condition resulting from excessive loss of
body fluid that occurs when fluid output exceeds intake.
◉ delirium. Answer: Acute, reversible state of disorientation and
confusion with difficulty focusing attention, inability to sleep, and
hyperactivity due to an underlying cause.
◉ delirium tremens. Answer: An acute alcohol withdrawal
syndrome marked by acute, transient disturbance of consciousness.
◉ delusions. Answer: False beliefs that are firmly maintained
despite incontrovertible proof to the contrary.
◉ dementia. Answer: A broad term that refers to cognitive deficit,
including memory impairment.
◉ demyelination. Answer: Loss of myelin from neurons.
◉ deontology. Answer: The study of moral obligations and
commitments, including medical ethics.
◉ dependence. Answer: A state of reliance on something.
Psychological craving for a drug that may or may not be
accompanied by a physiological need.
,◉ depression. Answer: A mental disorder marked by altered mood
and loss of interest in daily activities.
◉ dermatitis. Answer: Inflammation of the skin.
◉ dermatomycosis. Answer: A fungal infection of the skin.
◉ dermoid. Answer: Resembling the skin.
◉ developmental stage. Answer: An age-defined period with specific
psychological tasks that need to be accomplished to maintain ego as
proposed by Erik Erikson, a psychoanalyst.
◉ diabetes mellitus. Answer: A chronic disease characterized by
impaired production or use of insulin and high blood glucose levels.
◉ diaphysis. Answer: Long bone shaft.
◉ diarrhea. Answer: Passage of fluid or unformed stools.
, ◉ diastolic blood pressure. Answer: The amount of pressure exerted
on the wall of the arteries when the ventricles are at rest. The
bottom number of a blood pressure measurement.
◉ diffusion. Answer: The tendency of molecules of a substance
(gaseous, liquid, or solid) to move from a region of high
concentration to one of lower concentration.
◉ dilation and curettage. Answer: A surgical procedure that expands
the cervical canal of the uterus (dilation) so that the surface lining of
the uterine wall can be scraped (curettage).
◉ diplopia. Answer: Double vision.
◉ displacement. Answer: Transference of emotion from the original
idea with which it was associated to a different idea, allowing the
patient to avoid acknowledging the original source.
◉ disseminated intravascular coagulation. Answer: A pathological
form of coagulation that is diffuse (widespread) rather than
localized, as would be the case in normal coagulation. Clotting
factors are consumed to such an extent that generalized bleeding
may occur.
SURGICAL NURSING FINAL PAPER
ACTUAL EXAM QUESTIONS WITH
CORRECT ANSWERS
◉ debridement. Answer: The removal of foreign material and
contaminated and devitalized tissues from or adjacent to a traumatic
or infected area until surrounding healthy tissue is exposed.
◉ decerebrate. Answer: Abnormal extension posture indicating
brainstem damage.
◉ decorticate. Answer: Abnormal flexion posture indicating cerebral
damage.
◉ defibrillation. Answer: Use of an electrical device that applies
countershock to the heart through electrodes placed on the chest
wall to stop fibrillation of the heart.
◉ degeneration. Answer: Deterioration.
◉ dehiscence. Answer: A splitting open (i.e., rupture) of an incision.
,◉ dehydration. Answer: A condition resulting from excessive loss of
body fluid that occurs when fluid output exceeds intake.
◉ delirium. Answer: Acute, reversible state of disorientation and
confusion with difficulty focusing attention, inability to sleep, and
hyperactivity due to an underlying cause.
◉ delirium tremens. Answer: An acute alcohol withdrawal
syndrome marked by acute, transient disturbance of consciousness.
◉ delusions. Answer: False beliefs that are firmly maintained
despite incontrovertible proof to the contrary.
◉ dementia. Answer: A broad term that refers to cognitive deficit,
including memory impairment.
◉ demyelination. Answer: Loss of myelin from neurons.
◉ deontology. Answer: The study of moral obligations and
commitments, including medical ethics.
◉ dependence. Answer: A state of reliance on something.
Psychological craving for a drug that may or may not be
accompanied by a physiological need.
,◉ depression. Answer: A mental disorder marked by altered mood
and loss of interest in daily activities.
◉ dermatitis. Answer: Inflammation of the skin.
◉ dermatomycosis. Answer: A fungal infection of the skin.
◉ dermoid. Answer: Resembling the skin.
◉ developmental stage. Answer: An age-defined period with specific
psychological tasks that need to be accomplished to maintain ego as
proposed by Erik Erikson, a psychoanalyst.
◉ diabetes mellitus. Answer: A chronic disease characterized by
impaired production or use of insulin and high blood glucose levels.
◉ diaphysis. Answer: Long bone shaft.
◉ diarrhea. Answer: Passage of fluid or unformed stools.
, ◉ diastolic blood pressure. Answer: The amount of pressure exerted
on the wall of the arteries when the ventricles are at rest. The
bottom number of a blood pressure measurement.
◉ diffusion. Answer: The tendency of molecules of a substance
(gaseous, liquid, or solid) to move from a region of high
concentration to one of lower concentration.
◉ dilation and curettage. Answer: A surgical procedure that expands
the cervical canal of the uterus (dilation) so that the surface lining of
the uterine wall can be scraped (curettage).
◉ diplopia. Answer: Double vision.
◉ displacement. Answer: Transference of emotion from the original
idea with which it was associated to a different idea, allowing the
patient to avoid acknowledging the original source.
◉ disseminated intravascular coagulation. Answer: A pathological
form of coagulation that is diffuse (widespread) rather than
localized, as would be the case in normal coagulation. Clotting
factors are consumed to such an extent that generalized bleeding
may occur.
