EMT Airway Exam UPDATED Exam
Questions and CORRECT Answers
You are assessing an elderly man with respiratory distress. He is coughing up bloody sputum and
has an oxygen saturation of 85%. You auscultate his breath sounds and hear coarse crackles in all
lung fields. This patient MOST likely has:
A) congestive heart failure.
B) acute-onset emphysema.
C) decompensated asthma.
D) severe bacterial pneumonia. - CORRECT ANSWER - A) this is indicative of left sided
heart failure which leads to a pooling of blood in the lungs, B is a chronic condition, C will show
diminished lung sounds, and D will show lung sounds typically localized
tidal volume - CORRECT ANSWER - amount of air that is breathed into or out of the lungs in
a single breath
eupnea - CORRECT ANSWER - normal, good, unlabored breathing
minute alveolar volume - CORRECT ANSWER - volume of air that reaches alveoli per
minute
A young female experienced massive facial trauma and is unresponsive. After several attempts,
you are unable to adequately open her airway with the jaw-thrust maneuver. You should:
A) carefully tilt her head back and lift up on her chin.
B) insert a nasopharyngeal airway and apply oxygen.
C) apply oxygen and reattempt the jaw-thrust maneuver.
D) assist her ventilations with a bag-valve-mask device. - CORRECT ANSWER - A) while
jaw thrust is preferred since it minimizes movement of the spine, the head tilt chin lift is the next
best option, avoid NPA with head or face trauma b/c it may punch through damaged skull into
the cranium
,You are assessing a 66-year-old man who has emphysema and complains of worsened shortness
of breath. He is confused, has a heart rate of 120 beats/min, and has an oxygen saturation of
83%. Which of the following assessment findings should concern you the MOST?
A) Confusion
B) Tachycardia
C) Low oxygen saturation
D) Worsened shortness of breath - CORRECT ANSWER - A) a sign of possible severe
hypoxia in the brain
contraindicated - CORRECT ANSWER - suggest or indicate that a treatment/technique
should not be used due to the current circumstances
Which of the following devices is contraindicated in patients with blunt thoracic trauma?
A) Oral airway
B) Nasal airway
C) Bag-valve-mask device
D) Oxygen-powered ventilator - CORRECT ANSWER - D) which delivers oxygen under
high pressure and can cause pneumothorax, also avoid in pediatric patients and those with COPD
After an adult cardiac arrest patient has been intubated by a paramedic, you are providing
ventilations as your partner performs chest compressions. When ventilating the patient, you
should:
A) deliver 2 breaths during a brief pause in chest compressions.
B) deliver each breath over 1 second at a rate of 10 breaths/min.
C) hyperventilate the patient to maximize carbon dioxide elimination.
D) deliver each breath over 2 seconds at a rate of 15 breaths/min. - CORRECT ANSWER - B)
this is method after advanced airway has been put in place
sonorous breathing indicates ? - CORRECT ANSWER - anatomical obstruction
, immediate step after chest rise is seen while manually ventilating a patient - CORRECT
ANSWER - allow for exhalation
You are administering oxygen at 15 L/min to a patient with respiratory distress. If you are using
a D cylinder (cylinder constant, 0.16), which reads 1500 psi, how long will it take before you
need to replace the oxygen cylinder?
A) 9 minutes
B) 11 minutes
C) 14 minutes
D) 18 minutes - CORRECT ANSWER - C) length of time = (gauge pressure - safe residual
pressure) x (cylinder constant) / (flow rate) or (P-rP)(C)/(V) or (1500-200)(.16)/(15) = 13.8
You are assessing a middle-aged male who is experiencing respiratory distress. The patient has a
history of emphysema and hypertension. He appears fatigued; has weak retractions; and has
labored, shallow breathing. You should:
A) administer oxygen with a nonrebreathing mask.
B) auscultate his breath sounds to detect wheezing.
C) ventilate him with a bag-valve-mask device.
D) assess his oxygen saturation with a pulse oximeter. - CORRECT ANSWER - C) labored
breathing indicates respiratory failure and should be treated with BVM. Get O2 sat and
auscultate after assisting ventilations
bronchodilators - CORRECT ANSWER - albuterol (Ventolin), metaproterenol (Alupent) and
levalbuterol (Xopenex)
positive pressure ventilation - CORRECT ANSWER - pushes air into the lungs and increases
intrathoracic pressure, can impair venous return and cardiac output, additionally it can force
esophagus open, example: BVM
A 33-year-old female presents with acute respiratory distress. She is conscious but anxious, and
tells you that she has a history of asthma. She took two puffs of her albuterol inhaler prior to
your arrival, but states that it did not help. Her oxygen saturation reads 89% and you hear diffuse
wheezing while auscultating her lungs. You should:
Questions and CORRECT Answers
You are assessing an elderly man with respiratory distress. He is coughing up bloody sputum and
has an oxygen saturation of 85%. You auscultate his breath sounds and hear coarse crackles in all
lung fields. This patient MOST likely has:
A) congestive heart failure.
B) acute-onset emphysema.
C) decompensated asthma.
D) severe bacterial pneumonia. - CORRECT ANSWER - A) this is indicative of left sided
heart failure which leads to a pooling of blood in the lungs, B is a chronic condition, C will show
diminished lung sounds, and D will show lung sounds typically localized
tidal volume - CORRECT ANSWER - amount of air that is breathed into or out of the lungs in
a single breath
eupnea - CORRECT ANSWER - normal, good, unlabored breathing
minute alveolar volume - CORRECT ANSWER - volume of air that reaches alveoli per
minute
A young female experienced massive facial trauma and is unresponsive. After several attempts,
you are unable to adequately open her airway with the jaw-thrust maneuver. You should:
A) carefully tilt her head back and lift up on her chin.
B) insert a nasopharyngeal airway and apply oxygen.
C) apply oxygen and reattempt the jaw-thrust maneuver.
D) assist her ventilations with a bag-valve-mask device. - CORRECT ANSWER - A) while
jaw thrust is preferred since it minimizes movement of the spine, the head tilt chin lift is the next
best option, avoid NPA with head or face trauma b/c it may punch through damaged skull into
the cranium
,You are assessing a 66-year-old man who has emphysema and complains of worsened shortness
of breath. He is confused, has a heart rate of 120 beats/min, and has an oxygen saturation of
83%. Which of the following assessment findings should concern you the MOST?
A) Confusion
B) Tachycardia
C) Low oxygen saturation
D) Worsened shortness of breath - CORRECT ANSWER - A) a sign of possible severe
hypoxia in the brain
contraindicated - CORRECT ANSWER - suggest or indicate that a treatment/technique
should not be used due to the current circumstances
Which of the following devices is contraindicated in patients with blunt thoracic trauma?
A) Oral airway
B) Nasal airway
C) Bag-valve-mask device
D) Oxygen-powered ventilator - CORRECT ANSWER - D) which delivers oxygen under
high pressure and can cause pneumothorax, also avoid in pediatric patients and those with COPD
After an adult cardiac arrest patient has been intubated by a paramedic, you are providing
ventilations as your partner performs chest compressions. When ventilating the patient, you
should:
A) deliver 2 breaths during a brief pause in chest compressions.
B) deliver each breath over 1 second at a rate of 10 breaths/min.
C) hyperventilate the patient to maximize carbon dioxide elimination.
D) deliver each breath over 2 seconds at a rate of 15 breaths/min. - CORRECT ANSWER - B)
this is method after advanced airway has been put in place
sonorous breathing indicates ? - CORRECT ANSWER - anatomical obstruction
, immediate step after chest rise is seen while manually ventilating a patient - CORRECT
ANSWER - allow for exhalation
You are administering oxygen at 15 L/min to a patient with respiratory distress. If you are using
a D cylinder (cylinder constant, 0.16), which reads 1500 psi, how long will it take before you
need to replace the oxygen cylinder?
A) 9 minutes
B) 11 minutes
C) 14 minutes
D) 18 minutes - CORRECT ANSWER - C) length of time = (gauge pressure - safe residual
pressure) x (cylinder constant) / (flow rate) or (P-rP)(C)/(V) or (1500-200)(.16)/(15) = 13.8
You are assessing a middle-aged male who is experiencing respiratory distress. The patient has a
history of emphysema and hypertension. He appears fatigued; has weak retractions; and has
labored, shallow breathing. You should:
A) administer oxygen with a nonrebreathing mask.
B) auscultate his breath sounds to detect wheezing.
C) ventilate him with a bag-valve-mask device.
D) assess his oxygen saturation with a pulse oximeter. - CORRECT ANSWER - C) labored
breathing indicates respiratory failure and should be treated with BVM. Get O2 sat and
auscultate after assisting ventilations
bronchodilators - CORRECT ANSWER - albuterol (Ventolin), metaproterenol (Alupent) and
levalbuterol (Xopenex)
positive pressure ventilation - CORRECT ANSWER - pushes air into the lungs and increases
intrathoracic pressure, can impair venous return and cardiac output, additionally it can force
esophagus open, example: BVM
A 33-year-old female presents with acute respiratory distress. She is conscious but anxious, and
tells you that she has a history of asthma. She took two puffs of her albuterol inhaler prior to
your arrival, but states that it did not help. Her oxygen saturation reads 89% and you hear diffuse
wheezing while auscultating her lungs. You should:
