TMC EXAM – SECURE
COMPREHENSIVE THERAPIST SAE
EXAM BANK 2026 ACTUAL EXAM
QUESTIONS AND 100% CORRECT
DETAILED ANSWERS
,# TMC EXAM – SECURE COMPREHENSIVE THERAPIST SAE EXAM BANK
## 2026/2027 ACTUAL EXAM QUESTIONS AND 100% CORRECT DETAILED ANSWERS
**Exam Type:** Therapist Multiple-Choice (TMC) Self-Assessment Examination (SAE)
**Target Audience:** Respiratory Therapy Students and CRT/RRT Candidates
**Content Source:** Based on current NBRC testing matrix and clinical practice guidelines
---
## SECTION I: PATIENT ASSESSMENT & DIAGNOSTIC EVALUATION
### (Questions 1-20)
---
**Question 1**
A 48-year-old female is admitted to the ED with diaphoresis, jugular venous distension, and 3+ pitting
edema in the ankles. These findings are consistent with:
A. Liver failure
B. Pulmonary embolism
C. Heart failure
D. Electrolyte imbalances
---
✔ **Correct Answer: C. Heart failure**
,**Rationale:** Jugular venous distension (JVD) and pitting edema are classic signs of right-sided heart
failure. Diaphoresis can accompany significant cardiac events. A pulmonary embolism might cause JVD
but is less likely to present with bilateral lower extremity edema. Liver failure typically presents with
jaundice and ascites, not primarily JVD and peripheral edema. Electrolyte imbalances do not directly
cause these physical findings.
*Reference: NBRC TMC Exam Content Outline - Patient Assessment Domain*
---
**Question 2**
A patient is admitted to the ED following a motor vehicle accident. On physical exam, breath sounds are
absent in the left chest with a hyperresonant percussion note. The trachea is shifted to the right. HR:
45/min, RR: 30/min, BP: 60/40 mm Hg. What action should the therapist recommend FIRST?
A. Call for a STAT chest x-ray
B. Insert a chest tube into the left chest
C. Needle aspirate the 2nd left intercostal space
D. Activate the medical emergency team to intubate
---
✔ **Correct Answer: C. Needle aspirate the 2nd left intercostal space**
**Rationale:** The presentation is a tension pneumothorax: tracheal deviation away from the affected
side, absent breath sounds, hyperresonance, and hypotension. Immediate needle decompression (14-
16g) in the 2nd intercostal space, midclavicular line, is required to release trapped intrapleural air and
, restore cardiac output. Delaying for a chest x-ray could be fatal. While chest tube insertion is definitive
treatment, needle aspiration is the immediate life-saving intervention.
*Reference: NBRC TMC Exam Content Outline - Emergency Care Domain*
---
**Question 3**
A diabetic patient enters the emergency department breathing deeply at a respiratory rate of 32/min.
This type of breathing pattern is referred to as:
A. Kussmaul respiration
B. Biot respiration
C. Cheyne-Stokes respiration
D. Hypopnea
---
✔ **Correct Answer: A. Kussmaul respiration**
**Rationale:** Kussmaul respirations are a deep and rapid breathing pattern encountered in patients
with severe metabolic acidemia (low pH, low HCO₃⁻). The lungs are making an effort to increase the pH
back toward normal by removing CO₂ from the blood, which results in an increased pH. Biot respiration
is irregular with periods of apnea. Cheyne-Stokes is a crescendo-decrescendo pattern. Hypopnea refers
to shallow breathing.
*Reference: NBRC TMC Exam Content Outline - Patient Assessment Domain*
COMPREHENSIVE THERAPIST SAE
EXAM BANK 2026 ACTUAL EXAM
QUESTIONS AND 100% CORRECT
DETAILED ANSWERS
,# TMC EXAM – SECURE COMPREHENSIVE THERAPIST SAE EXAM BANK
## 2026/2027 ACTUAL EXAM QUESTIONS AND 100% CORRECT DETAILED ANSWERS
**Exam Type:** Therapist Multiple-Choice (TMC) Self-Assessment Examination (SAE)
**Target Audience:** Respiratory Therapy Students and CRT/RRT Candidates
**Content Source:** Based on current NBRC testing matrix and clinical practice guidelines
---
## SECTION I: PATIENT ASSESSMENT & DIAGNOSTIC EVALUATION
### (Questions 1-20)
---
**Question 1**
A 48-year-old female is admitted to the ED with diaphoresis, jugular venous distension, and 3+ pitting
edema in the ankles. These findings are consistent with:
A. Liver failure
B. Pulmonary embolism
C. Heart failure
D. Electrolyte imbalances
---
✔ **Correct Answer: C. Heart failure**
,**Rationale:** Jugular venous distension (JVD) and pitting edema are classic signs of right-sided heart
failure. Diaphoresis can accompany significant cardiac events. A pulmonary embolism might cause JVD
but is less likely to present with bilateral lower extremity edema. Liver failure typically presents with
jaundice and ascites, not primarily JVD and peripheral edema. Electrolyte imbalances do not directly
cause these physical findings.
*Reference: NBRC TMC Exam Content Outline - Patient Assessment Domain*
---
**Question 2**
A patient is admitted to the ED following a motor vehicle accident. On physical exam, breath sounds are
absent in the left chest with a hyperresonant percussion note. The trachea is shifted to the right. HR:
45/min, RR: 30/min, BP: 60/40 mm Hg. What action should the therapist recommend FIRST?
A. Call for a STAT chest x-ray
B. Insert a chest tube into the left chest
C. Needle aspirate the 2nd left intercostal space
D. Activate the medical emergency team to intubate
---
✔ **Correct Answer: C. Needle aspirate the 2nd left intercostal space**
**Rationale:** The presentation is a tension pneumothorax: tracheal deviation away from the affected
side, absent breath sounds, hyperresonance, and hypotension. Immediate needle decompression (14-
16g) in the 2nd intercostal space, midclavicular line, is required to release trapped intrapleural air and
, restore cardiac output. Delaying for a chest x-ray could be fatal. While chest tube insertion is definitive
treatment, needle aspiration is the immediate life-saving intervention.
*Reference: NBRC TMC Exam Content Outline - Emergency Care Domain*
---
**Question 3**
A diabetic patient enters the emergency department breathing deeply at a respiratory rate of 32/min.
This type of breathing pattern is referred to as:
A. Kussmaul respiration
B. Biot respiration
C. Cheyne-Stokes respiration
D. Hypopnea
---
✔ **Correct Answer: A. Kussmaul respiration**
**Rationale:** Kussmaul respirations are a deep and rapid breathing pattern encountered in patients
with severe metabolic acidemia (low pH, low HCO₃⁻). The lungs are making an effort to increase the pH
back toward normal by removing CO₂ from the blood, which results in an increased pH. Biot respiration
is irregular with periods of apnea. Cheyne-Stokes is a crescendo-decrescendo pattern. Hypopnea refers
to shallow breathing.
*Reference: NBRC TMC Exam Content Outline - Patient Assessment Domain*
