CIC Studying 2024: CIC Practice Exam
Questions
A 16-year-old male is brought to the ER with a fever, and a wound on his left leg that is
draining purulent material. He complains of swelling and pain. He is a quarterback on
the high school football team and has several turf burns on both legs. Past medical
history is insignificant. The culture grows gram-positive organisms in clusters. What is
the most likely differential diagnosis?
a. Parasitic infection
b. Atypical mycobacterium infection
c. Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus
d. Streptococcus pyogenes - ANS-C. Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus
Rationale: Athletes can contract CA-MRSA by close skin to skin contact, sharing athletic
equipment, sharing towels, razors, or other personal items with someone who has an
active infection or who is a carrier. Athletes may get abrasions from artificial turf; these
abrasions may serve as an entry point for CA-MRSA.
A child presents to the ER with fever, headache, and sudden bright red "slapped cheek"
rash. Which virus is the likely cause?
Coxsackievirus
Human metapneumovirus
Paramyxovirus
Parvovirus B19 - ANS-d) Parvovirus B19, which can cause a bright red facial rash in
children referred to as a "slapped cheek" rash or Fifth Disease. **A good resource is the
Red Book for pediatric infectious diseases**
A competency statement describes:
a. Responsible personnel.
b. Steps in a psychomotor skill.
c. Recommended performance measures.
d. Worker skill, knowledge, and mind set needed to perform a duty. - ANS-d. Worker
skill, knowledge, and mind set needed to perform a duty
A critical review of methods should include all of the following except:
,Time period
Controls compatible to cases
Limitations/weaknesses
Study design designed in detail - ANS-Limitations/weaknesses
A distribution curve that has a skew value of +3 will exhibit what shape? - ANS-An
enlarged tail to the right. This is indicating there are more data than expected on the
right (or positive) end of the distribution curve. Skew is positive when the mean is
greater than the median, negative when the mean is lesser than the median. Value of 0
= normal bell curve with no skew. Negative value = skew to the left.
A Gram stain indicates a Gram negative bacilli. What organism does it most likely
represent?
Staphylococcus aureus
Enterococcus faecium
Pseudomonas aeruginosa
Clostridium perfringens - ANS-c) Pseudomonas is the only Gram negative organism on
the list. S. aureus are Gram positive cocci; E. faecium are Gram positive cocci; C.
perfringens are Gram positive rods
A gram stain of cerebrospinal fluid showing gram negative diplococci strongly suggest
which of the following:
a. Aseptic Meningitis
b. Pneumococcal disease
c. Meningococcal disease
d. H. influenzae disease - ANS-c) Meningococcal disease
A healthcare facility is undergoing extensive renovation. Surveillance for which of the
following organisms would be particularly important during any construction or
renovation project in a healthcare facility?
a. MRSA, VRE, and other MDROs
b. Legionella and Aspergillus
c. Gram-negative bacilli
d. Mycobacterium abscessus - ANS-b. Legionella and Aspergillus
, A major difference between a prospective and a retrospective study is that the
prospective study:
a. Requires a relatively small number of subjects
b. Is usually used for testing initial hypotheses
c. May require a long follow-up period
d. Is usually less costly - ANS-c. May require a long follow-up period
A new infection preventionist (IP) is preparing a report and wants to describe the data.
The simplest and crudest levels of measurements should include which of the
following?
A) rates
B) risk ratios
C) nominal scales
D) measures of association - ANS-C) nominal scales
A patient is admitted to rule out TB. All of the following would be noted as a risk factor
for transmission of infection to the staff except:
a. Improper N95 respirator use by the staff
b. Surgical mask placed on the patient during transport
c. Acid-fast bacilli (AFB) smear positive sputum culture from the patient
d. Patient placed in a regular exam room in the emergency room - ANS-b. Surgical
mask placed on the patient during transport
A patient is admitted to the hospital with severe community acquired pneumonia (CAP).
His symptoms include hemoptysis and a multilobar infiltrate seen on chest radiograph.
The patient is recovering from a recent influenza virus infection. What organism should
be suspected?
a. Moraxella catarrhalis
b. Streptococcus pneumoniae
c. MRSA
d.Haemophilus influenzae - ANS-C. MRSA
Rationale: Community-associated MRSA (CA-MRSA) strains are primarily associated
with skin and soft tissue infections; however, they are increasingly causing more
invasive infections, including severe CAP. CA-MRSA should be suspected in patients
Questions
A 16-year-old male is brought to the ER with a fever, and a wound on his left leg that is
draining purulent material. He complains of swelling and pain. He is a quarterback on
the high school football team and has several turf burns on both legs. Past medical
history is insignificant. The culture grows gram-positive organisms in clusters. What is
the most likely differential diagnosis?
a. Parasitic infection
b. Atypical mycobacterium infection
c. Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus
d. Streptococcus pyogenes - ANS-C. Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus
Rationale: Athletes can contract CA-MRSA by close skin to skin contact, sharing athletic
equipment, sharing towels, razors, or other personal items with someone who has an
active infection or who is a carrier. Athletes may get abrasions from artificial turf; these
abrasions may serve as an entry point for CA-MRSA.
A child presents to the ER with fever, headache, and sudden bright red "slapped cheek"
rash. Which virus is the likely cause?
Coxsackievirus
Human metapneumovirus
Paramyxovirus
Parvovirus B19 - ANS-d) Parvovirus B19, which can cause a bright red facial rash in
children referred to as a "slapped cheek" rash or Fifth Disease. **A good resource is the
Red Book for pediatric infectious diseases**
A competency statement describes:
a. Responsible personnel.
b. Steps in a psychomotor skill.
c. Recommended performance measures.
d. Worker skill, knowledge, and mind set needed to perform a duty. - ANS-d. Worker
skill, knowledge, and mind set needed to perform a duty
A critical review of methods should include all of the following except:
,Time period
Controls compatible to cases
Limitations/weaknesses
Study design designed in detail - ANS-Limitations/weaknesses
A distribution curve that has a skew value of +3 will exhibit what shape? - ANS-An
enlarged tail to the right. This is indicating there are more data than expected on the
right (or positive) end of the distribution curve. Skew is positive when the mean is
greater than the median, negative when the mean is lesser than the median. Value of 0
= normal bell curve with no skew. Negative value = skew to the left.
A Gram stain indicates a Gram negative bacilli. What organism does it most likely
represent?
Staphylococcus aureus
Enterococcus faecium
Pseudomonas aeruginosa
Clostridium perfringens - ANS-c) Pseudomonas is the only Gram negative organism on
the list. S. aureus are Gram positive cocci; E. faecium are Gram positive cocci; C.
perfringens are Gram positive rods
A gram stain of cerebrospinal fluid showing gram negative diplococci strongly suggest
which of the following:
a. Aseptic Meningitis
b. Pneumococcal disease
c. Meningococcal disease
d. H. influenzae disease - ANS-c) Meningococcal disease
A healthcare facility is undergoing extensive renovation. Surveillance for which of the
following organisms would be particularly important during any construction or
renovation project in a healthcare facility?
a. MRSA, VRE, and other MDROs
b. Legionella and Aspergillus
c. Gram-negative bacilli
d. Mycobacterium abscessus - ANS-b. Legionella and Aspergillus
, A major difference between a prospective and a retrospective study is that the
prospective study:
a. Requires a relatively small number of subjects
b. Is usually used for testing initial hypotheses
c. May require a long follow-up period
d. Is usually less costly - ANS-c. May require a long follow-up period
A new infection preventionist (IP) is preparing a report and wants to describe the data.
The simplest and crudest levels of measurements should include which of the
following?
A) rates
B) risk ratios
C) nominal scales
D) measures of association - ANS-C) nominal scales
A patient is admitted to rule out TB. All of the following would be noted as a risk factor
for transmission of infection to the staff except:
a. Improper N95 respirator use by the staff
b. Surgical mask placed on the patient during transport
c. Acid-fast bacilli (AFB) smear positive sputum culture from the patient
d. Patient placed in a regular exam room in the emergency room - ANS-b. Surgical
mask placed on the patient during transport
A patient is admitted to the hospital with severe community acquired pneumonia (CAP).
His symptoms include hemoptysis and a multilobar infiltrate seen on chest radiograph.
The patient is recovering from a recent influenza virus infection. What organism should
be suspected?
a. Moraxella catarrhalis
b. Streptococcus pneumoniae
c. MRSA
d.Haemophilus influenzae - ANS-C. MRSA
Rationale: Community-associated MRSA (CA-MRSA) strains are primarily associated
with skin and soft tissue infections; however, they are increasingly causing more
invasive infections, including severe CAP. CA-MRSA should be suspected in patients
