NURS 190 Physical Assessment (2026) – 420 Questions on Head, Neck, Skin, Hair & Nails Examination

This document contains approximately 420 structured exam-style questions and answers covering foundational and system-focused physical assessment concepts for NURS 190 Physical Assessment (2026). The material begins with core assessment techniques—inspection, palpation, percussion, and auscultation—and clearly outlines when each technique is used, including abdominal sequencing variations (inspection, auscultation, percussion, palpation) (pages 1–2). It thoroughly explains palpation depths (light 0.5–1 cm, moderate 1–2 cm, deep 2–4 cm), sensitive hand surfaces (dorsal surface for temperature, finger pads for pulses and lymph nodes), percussion types and sounds (tympany, resonance, hyperresonance, dullness, flatness), and proper use of equipment such as stethoscope diaphragm vs bell, otoscope positioning by age, Doppler, Wood’s lamp, goniometer, reflex hammer, and transilluminator (pages 5–14). Standard precautions, safe examination environment principles, and critical thinking components (organize, analyze, interpret) are also emphasized (pages 14–15). Extensive head, neck, and lymphatic assessment content includes skull bones, sutures, pediatric fontanelles, thyroid anatomy and palpation technique, cranial nerve considerations, lymph node chains (preauricular, postauricular, occipital, submental, submandibular, cervical chains, supraclavicular), and normal versus abnormal findings (pages 16–27). Abnormal conditions such as hydrocephalus, craniosynostosis, acromegaly, Down syndrome, Bell’s palsy, hypothyroidism, hyperthyroidism, and goiter are clearly outlined (pages 28–31). The integumentary system section provides comprehensive coverage of skin layers (epidermis, dermis—papillary and reticular, hypodermis), functions (protection, temperature regulation, vitamin D synthesis, sensation), sweat and sebaceous glands, hair types (vellus and terminal), nail anatomy, and focused interview questions (pages 33–44). Detailed skin assessment skills include inspection of tone and pigmentation, palpation for temperature, moisture, elasticity, lesions, edema grading (1+ to 4+), and turgor evaluation (pages 46–49). Primary and secondary lesions are thoroughly categorized (macule, papule, plaque, vesicle, bulla, wheal, pustule, cyst, ulcer, fissure, scar, keloid), along with lesion configurations (annular, grouped, target, linear, polycyclic, zosteriform, discrete) (pages 58–69). Vascular lesions (hemangioma, port-wine stain, ecchymosis, purpura, spider angioma, venous lake) and malignant skin cancers (basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, malignant melanoma, Kaposi’s sarcoma) are clearly defined with distinguishing characteristics (pages 70–75). Pediatric skin findings (vernix caseosa, milia, lanugo, Mongolian spots), pregnancy changes (melasma, linea nigra), geriatric changes (decreased elasticity and melanin), and cultural considerations (coining, cupping, pinching) are also included (pages 54–78). The structured Q&A format mirrors undergraduate nursing physical assessment examinations and supports mastery of systematic examination techniques, anatomical knowledge, dermatologic assessment, clinical reasoning, and documentation standards. This resource is especially relevant for: NURS 190 students Physical Assessment courses Foundations of Nursing courses ADN and BSN nursing programs Head-to-toe assessment check-off preparation NCLEX-style health assessment review Keywords: NURS 190 Physical Assessment 2026 inspection palpation percussion auscultation light moderate deep palpation depth percussion sounds tympany resonance dullness stethoscope diaphragm vs bell lymph node chains head and neck thyroid palpation technique fontanelles sutures pediatric skull skin layers epidermis dermis hypodermis primary and secondary skin lesions ABCDE mole assessment edema grading 1 plus 4 plus skin turgor assessment basal cell carcinoma characteristics malignant melanoma ABCDE pediatric skin findings vernix lanugo cultural practices coining cupping pinching nail clubbing assessment hair abnormalities tinea capitis alopecia