NURS5220 Exam #2 2025 Questions
and Answers
Mr. Tucker is a 56-year-old patient who presents to your office with a complaint of
rectal pain. On examination you are palpating the lateral and posterior rectal walls.
What should you expect to feel?
A. A smooth, even, and uninterrupted surface
B. Small nodules from internal hemorrhoids
C. Tissue folds from the valves of Houston
D. Bulging from the bladder wall - ✔✔A: CorrectThe walls should feel smooth, even,
and uninterrupted.
Mr. Yates is a 62-year-old patient who presents with a chief complaint of rectal pain.
The examiner will focus the history and examination on which known fact?
A. Rectal pain is almost always accompanied by an infection.
B. Rectal pain is almost always an indication of local disease.
C. A complaint of rectal pain is usually associated with a serious systemic process.
COPYRIGHT © 2025 BY OLIVIA WEST, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 1
,D. One of the most common causes of rectal pain is prostatic enlargement. - ✔✔B:
CorrectRectal pain is almost always indicative of a local disease.
Mr. Bower is a 78-year-old patient who is unable to assume a standing position for a
routine rectal examination. Which is the best alternative position?
A. Lithotomy position
B. Left lateral position with the knees flexed
C. Knee-chest position
D. Prone position - ✔✔B: CorrectThe rectal examination can be performed with the
patient in any of these positions: knee-chest; left lateral with hips and knees flexed;
lithotomy, or standing with the hips flexed and the upper body supported by the
examining table.
A pregnant woman presents to the emergency department with the complaint of dark
stools. She tells the examiner, "I read in a magazine that this is a sign of bleeding."
Which question by the examiner is most applicable for this situation?
A. "Where did you read that information?"
B. "Have you been giving yourself enemas?"
C. "How much fruit and vegetable intake have you had in the last few days?"
D. "Are you taking prenatal vitamins?" - ✔✔D: CorrectDuring pregnancy, the stool
color may be dark green or black if the woman is taking iron supplements.
Mr. Allen is a 56-year-old patient who presents for a routine physical examination.
Before palpating his prostate, you should tell him, "You may feel an urge to _______."
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,A. urinate
B. defecate
C. vomit
D. faint - ✔✔A: CorrectIn men, you can palpate the posterior surface of the prostate
gland on the anterior wall. Tell the patient that he may feel the urge to urinate but that
he will not.
How is the anal ring assessed?
A. Inspection of the anus
B. External palpation of the anus
C. Use of a sigmoidoscope
D. Rotation of a finger within the anal sphincter - ✔✔D: CorrectRotate your finger to
examine the muscular anal ring.
Which example best describes how firm you expect a healthy prostate gland to feel?
A. It feels like a soft olive or grape.
B. It feels like the topside of a plastic LEGO piece.
C. It feels like a small baseball.
D. It feels like a pencil eraser - ✔✔D: . CorrectThe gland should feel like a pencil
eraser—firm, smooth, and slightly movable—and it should be nontender.
What is the best method of verifying anal patency in a newborn?
COPYRIGHT © 2025 BY OLIVIA WEST, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 3
, A. Inserting a lubricated thermometer through the anus and into the rectum
B. Inserting the fifth digit through the anus and into the rectum
C. Checking for the passage of meconium in the first 24 to 48 hours after birth
D. Inspecting the anus for an anal opening - ✔✔C: CorrectIf there is no passage of stool
in 24 hours in a newborn, suspect rectal atresia, Hirschsprung disease (congenital
megacolon), or cystic fibrosis.
Mr. Santos is a 67-year-old patient who presents to your office. On examination, you
palpate his prostate, noting that it is hard and irregular. The median sulcus is not
palpable. These findings are consistent with:
A. prostate cancer.
B. benign prostate hypertrophy.
C. prostatitis.
D. a rectal mass. - ✔✔A: CorrectWith cancer of the prostate, a hard, irregular nodule
may be palpable on prostate examination.
Mr. Mills, a 38-year-old patient, presents with severe rectal pain and fever. Which
condition might be the cause of the symptoms?
COPYRIGHT © 2025 BY OLIVIA WEST, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 4
and Answers
Mr. Tucker is a 56-year-old patient who presents to your office with a complaint of
rectal pain. On examination you are palpating the lateral and posterior rectal walls.
What should you expect to feel?
A. A smooth, even, and uninterrupted surface
B. Small nodules from internal hemorrhoids
C. Tissue folds from the valves of Houston
D. Bulging from the bladder wall - ✔✔A: CorrectThe walls should feel smooth, even,
and uninterrupted.
Mr. Yates is a 62-year-old patient who presents with a chief complaint of rectal pain.
The examiner will focus the history and examination on which known fact?
A. Rectal pain is almost always accompanied by an infection.
B. Rectal pain is almost always an indication of local disease.
C. A complaint of rectal pain is usually associated with a serious systemic process.
COPYRIGHT © 2025 BY OLIVIA WEST, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 1
,D. One of the most common causes of rectal pain is prostatic enlargement. - ✔✔B:
CorrectRectal pain is almost always indicative of a local disease.
Mr. Bower is a 78-year-old patient who is unable to assume a standing position for a
routine rectal examination. Which is the best alternative position?
A. Lithotomy position
B. Left lateral position with the knees flexed
C. Knee-chest position
D. Prone position - ✔✔B: CorrectThe rectal examination can be performed with the
patient in any of these positions: knee-chest; left lateral with hips and knees flexed;
lithotomy, or standing with the hips flexed and the upper body supported by the
examining table.
A pregnant woman presents to the emergency department with the complaint of dark
stools. She tells the examiner, "I read in a magazine that this is a sign of bleeding."
Which question by the examiner is most applicable for this situation?
A. "Where did you read that information?"
B. "Have you been giving yourself enemas?"
C. "How much fruit and vegetable intake have you had in the last few days?"
D. "Are you taking prenatal vitamins?" - ✔✔D: CorrectDuring pregnancy, the stool
color may be dark green or black if the woman is taking iron supplements.
Mr. Allen is a 56-year-old patient who presents for a routine physical examination.
Before palpating his prostate, you should tell him, "You may feel an urge to _______."
COPYRIGHT © 2025 BY OLIVIA WEST, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 2
,A. urinate
B. defecate
C. vomit
D. faint - ✔✔A: CorrectIn men, you can palpate the posterior surface of the prostate
gland on the anterior wall. Tell the patient that he may feel the urge to urinate but that
he will not.
How is the anal ring assessed?
A. Inspection of the anus
B. External palpation of the anus
C. Use of a sigmoidoscope
D. Rotation of a finger within the anal sphincter - ✔✔D: CorrectRotate your finger to
examine the muscular anal ring.
Which example best describes how firm you expect a healthy prostate gland to feel?
A. It feels like a soft olive or grape.
B. It feels like the topside of a plastic LEGO piece.
C. It feels like a small baseball.
D. It feels like a pencil eraser - ✔✔D: . CorrectThe gland should feel like a pencil
eraser—firm, smooth, and slightly movable—and it should be nontender.
What is the best method of verifying anal patency in a newborn?
COPYRIGHT © 2025 BY OLIVIA WEST, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 3
, A. Inserting a lubricated thermometer through the anus and into the rectum
B. Inserting the fifth digit through the anus and into the rectum
C. Checking for the passage of meconium in the first 24 to 48 hours after birth
D. Inspecting the anus for an anal opening - ✔✔C: CorrectIf there is no passage of stool
in 24 hours in a newborn, suspect rectal atresia, Hirschsprung disease (congenital
megacolon), or cystic fibrosis.
Mr. Santos is a 67-year-old patient who presents to your office. On examination, you
palpate his prostate, noting that it is hard and irregular. The median sulcus is not
palpable. These findings are consistent with:
A. prostate cancer.
B. benign prostate hypertrophy.
C. prostatitis.
D. a rectal mass. - ✔✔A: CorrectWith cancer of the prostate, a hard, irregular nodule
may be palpable on prostate examination.
Mr. Mills, a 38-year-old patient, presents with severe rectal pain and fever. Which
condition might be the cause of the symptoms?
COPYRIGHT © 2025 BY OLIVIA WEST, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 4
