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CSTR EXAM LATEST 2026-2027 LATEST
VERSION WITH 300 QUESTIONS AND CORRECT
RATIONALIZED SOLUTIONS JUST RELEASED
THIS YEAR
CSTR EXAM – COMPREHENSIVE PRACTICE QUESTION BANK
Exam Coverage Summary: The Certified Specialist in Trauma Registries (CSTR) examination
assesses competency across four core domains: Trauma Systems and Network Development
(10-15%), Data Management and the National Trauma Data Set (NTDS) (25-30%), Conditions of
Injury and Mechanism Analysis (25-30%), and Coding and Scoring Concepts including ICD-10-
CM, AIS, ISS, and RTS (30-35%). The exam consists of up to 165 multiple-choice questions
testing knowledge of data abstraction, injury coding, severity scoring, quality improvement
methodologies, and regulatory compliance with American Trauma Society and American College
of Surgeons standards.
QUESTIONS 1-300
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1. A Level II trauma center is establishing a new trauma registry. What is the PRIMARY purpose
for maintaining this registry?
A) Billing and reimbursement for trauma services
B) Injury control, medical research, hospital operations, and quality improvement
C) Compliance with state reporting mandates only
D) Marketing the trauma center to the community
Answer: B The primary purpose of a trauma registry is to support injury control, medical
research, hospital operations, and quality improvement initiatives, not billing or marketing.
2. A trauma registrar is reviewing a patient record with a diagnosis documented as "probable
splenic laceration." What is the correct approach to coding this injury?
A) Code it as a confirmed diagnosis
B) Do not code it until confirmed
C) Code it as a probable diagnosis with appropriate AIS mapping
D) Assign the most severe possible code
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Answer: C Probable, suspected, and rule-out diagnoses are acceptable to code with ICD-10-CM
and AIS when confirmed diagnosis is not possible.
3. An injured patient arrives with an AIS score of 6 in the head region. What is the correct Injury
Severity Score (ISS)?
A) 6
B) 25
C) 75
D) Cannot be determined
Answer: C When any injury is assigned an AIS of 6 (maximal, virtually unsurvivable), the ISS is
automatically assigned as 75.
4. A trauma registry has one full-time equivalent (FTE) registrar. What is the recommended
annual patient caseload for this position?
A) 250-500 patients
B) 500-750 patients
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C) 750-1000 patients
D) 1000-1250 patients
Answer: C The recommended staffing ratio for trauma registry personnel is approximately 750-
1000 patients per FTE.
5. A trauma patient is admitted with injuries to the head (AIS 4), chest (AIS 3), and abdomen
(AIS 2). What is the patient's ISS?
A) 9
B) 16
C) 25
D) 29
Answer: D ISS is calculated by summing the squares of the highest AIS score in each of the three
most severely injured body regions: 4² + 3² + 2² = 16 + 9 + 4 = 29.
6. The trauma registrar is abstracting data for the National Trauma Data Bank (NTDB). Which
organization originated the NTDB?
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SUCCESS!
CSTR EXAM LATEST 2026-2027 LATEST
VERSION WITH 300 QUESTIONS AND CORRECT
RATIONALIZED SOLUTIONS JUST RELEASED
THIS YEAR
CSTR EXAM – COMPREHENSIVE PRACTICE QUESTION BANK
Exam Coverage Summary: The Certified Specialist in Trauma Registries (CSTR) examination
assesses competency across four core domains: Trauma Systems and Network Development
(10-15%), Data Management and the National Trauma Data Set (NTDS) (25-30%), Conditions of
Injury and Mechanism Analysis (25-30%), and Coding and Scoring Concepts including ICD-10-
CM, AIS, ISS, and RTS (30-35%). The exam consists of up to 165 multiple-choice questions
testing knowledge of data abstraction, injury coding, severity scoring, quality improvement
methodologies, and regulatory compliance with American Trauma Society and American College
of Surgeons standards.
QUESTIONS 1-300
1
SUCCESS!
,Page 2 of 150
1. A Level II trauma center is establishing a new trauma registry. What is the PRIMARY purpose
for maintaining this registry?
A) Billing and reimbursement for trauma services
B) Injury control, medical research, hospital operations, and quality improvement
C) Compliance with state reporting mandates only
D) Marketing the trauma center to the community
Answer: B The primary purpose of a trauma registry is to support injury control, medical
research, hospital operations, and quality improvement initiatives, not billing or marketing.
2. A trauma registrar is reviewing a patient record with a diagnosis documented as "probable
splenic laceration." What is the correct approach to coding this injury?
A) Code it as a confirmed diagnosis
B) Do not code it until confirmed
C) Code it as a probable diagnosis with appropriate AIS mapping
D) Assign the most severe possible code
2
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Answer: C Probable, suspected, and rule-out diagnoses are acceptable to code with ICD-10-CM
and AIS when confirmed diagnosis is not possible.
3. An injured patient arrives with an AIS score of 6 in the head region. What is the correct Injury
Severity Score (ISS)?
A) 6
B) 25
C) 75
D) Cannot be determined
Answer: C When any injury is assigned an AIS of 6 (maximal, virtually unsurvivable), the ISS is
automatically assigned as 75.
4. A trauma registry has one full-time equivalent (FTE) registrar. What is the recommended
annual patient caseload for this position?
A) 250-500 patients
B) 500-750 patients
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C) 750-1000 patients
D) 1000-1250 patients
Answer: C The recommended staffing ratio for trauma registry personnel is approximately 750-
1000 patients per FTE.
5. A trauma patient is admitted with injuries to the head (AIS 4), chest (AIS 3), and abdomen
(AIS 2). What is the patient's ISS?
A) 9
B) 16
C) 25
D) 29
Answer: D ISS is calculated by summing the squares of the highest AIS score in each of the three
most severely injured body regions: 4² + 3² + 2² = 16 + 9 + 4 = 29.
6. The trauma registrar is abstracting data for the National Trauma Data Bank (NTDB). Which
organization originated the NTDB?
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