WEST COAST EMT BLOCK 2 REVIEW EXAM
100+ QUESTIONS WITH CORRECT
ANSWERS AND DETAILED RATIONALES
RESPIRATORY EMERGENCIES
1. You are attending to a 27-year-old male driver of a
car. According to his passenger, the patient had been
acting strangely while driving, then slumped forward
against the steering wheel, apparently unconscious. The
car drove off the road and struck a telephone pole. The
patient remains unconscious, and physical assessment
reveals only a large hematoma on his right forehead with
no other physical signs. Your patient is a diabetic who had
been under a lot of stress lately and may have missed
meals. This is an example of a:
A. combination of a psychiatric and trauma emergency
B. medical emergency
,C. trauma emergency
D. combination of a medical and trauma emergency
Rationale: The patient's diabetic history and missed meals
suggest a medical emergency (hypoglycemia) that may have
caused him to lose consciousness and crash the vehicle,
resulting in trauma (head injury and hematoma). This
represents both a medical and trauma emergency requiring
comprehensive management .
2. "PASTE" is an alternate assessment tool for
___________.
A. respiratory patients
B. seizure patients
C. stroke patients
D. cardiac patients
Rationale: PASTE (Prolonged expiration, Accessory muscle
use, Speaking in incomplete sentences, Tripod position, and
End-stage) is an assessment mnemonic specifically designed
for evaluating respiratory patients. It helps identify the
severity of respiratory distress and the patient's ability to
move air effectively .
,3. A 30-year-old male presents with acute shortness of
breath, widespread hives, and facial swelling. He denies
any past medical history and takes no medications. During
your assessment, you hear wheezing over all the lung
fields. His blood pressure is 90/50 mm Hg and his heart
rate is 110 beats/min. In addition to giving him high-flow
oxygen, the MOST important treatment for this patient
is:
A. epinephrine
B. a beta-antagonist
C. albuterol
D. an antihistamine
Rationale: This patient is experiencing anaphylactic shock as
evidenced by widespread hives, facial swelling, wheezing,
hypotension (90/50), and tachycardia. Epinephrine is the
definitive treatment for anaphylaxis as it reverses
bronchoconstriction, vasodilation, and hypotension by
stimulating alpha and beta-adrenergic receptors.
Antihistamines work too slowly in acute anaphylaxis .
4. A 59-year-old male with a history of emphysema
complains of an acute worsening of his dyspnea and
pleuritic chest pain following a forceful cough. Your
, assessment reveals that he has a barrel-shaped chest,
unilaterally diminished breath sounds, and tachycardia.
What is the MOST likely cause of this patient's condition?
A. Spontaneous pneumothorax
B. Exacerbation of his COPD
C. Acute pulmonary embolism
D. Rupture of the diaphragm
Rationale: A patient with emphysema (COPD) is at high risk
for spontaneous pneumothorax due to weakened lung tissue.
The forceful cough likely caused a rupture of a bleb, leading
to air in the pleural space. Unilaterally diminished breath
sounds with pleuritic chest pain are classic findings. COPD
exacerbation would typically present with bilateral findings .
5. A pleural effusion is MOST accurately defined as:
A. fluid accumulation outside the lung
B. diffuse collapsing of the alveoli
C. a unilaterally collapsed lung
D. a bacterial infection of the lung tissue
Rationale: A pleural effusion is the abnormal accumulation of
fluid in the pleural space (the space between the visceral and
parietal pleura), which is outside the lung tissue itself. This
fluid can compress the lung and impair ventilation. A collapsed
100+ QUESTIONS WITH CORRECT
ANSWERS AND DETAILED RATIONALES
RESPIRATORY EMERGENCIES
1. You are attending to a 27-year-old male driver of a
car. According to his passenger, the patient had been
acting strangely while driving, then slumped forward
against the steering wheel, apparently unconscious. The
car drove off the road and struck a telephone pole. The
patient remains unconscious, and physical assessment
reveals only a large hematoma on his right forehead with
no other physical signs. Your patient is a diabetic who had
been under a lot of stress lately and may have missed
meals. This is an example of a:
A. combination of a psychiatric and trauma emergency
B. medical emergency
,C. trauma emergency
D. combination of a medical and trauma emergency
Rationale: The patient's diabetic history and missed meals
suggest a medical emergency (hypoglycemia) that may have
caused him to lose consciousness and crash the vehicle,
resulting in trauma (head injury and hematoma). This
represents both a medical and trauma emergency requiring
comprehensive management .
2. "PASTE" is an alternate assessment tool for
___________.
A. respiratory patients
B. seizure patients
C. stroke patients
D. cardiac patients
Rationale: PASTE (Prolonged expiration, Accessory muscle
use, Speaking in incomplete sentences, Tripod position, and
End-stage) is an assessment mnemonic specifically designed
for evaluating respiratory patients. It helps identify the
severity of respiratory distress and the patient's ability to
move air effectively .
,3. A 30-year-old male presents with acute shortness of
breath, widespread hives, and facial swelling. He denies
any past medical history and takes no medications. During
your assessment, you hear wheezing over all the lung
fields. His blood pressure is 90/50 mm Hg and his heart
rate is 110 beats/min. In addition to giving him high-flow
oxygen, the MOST important treatment for this patient
is:
A. epinephrine
B. a beta-antagonist
C. albuterol
D. an antihistamine
Rationale: This patient is experiencing anaphylactic shock as
evidenced by widespread hives, facial swelling, wheezing,
hypotension (90/50), and tachycardia. Epinephrine is the
definitive treatment for anaphylaxis as it reverses
bronchoconstriction, vasodilation, and hypotension by
stimulating alpha and beta-adrenergic receptors.
Antihistamines work too slowly in acute anaphylaxis .
4. A 59-year-old male with a history of emphysema
complains of an acute worsening of his dyspnea and
pleuritic chest pain following a forceful cough. Your
, assessment reveals that he has a barrel-shaped chest,
unilaterally diminished breath sounds, and tachycardia.
What is the MOST likely cause of this patient's condition?
A. Spontaneous pneumothorax
B. Exacerbation of his COPD
C. Acute pulmonary embolism
D. Rupture of the diaphragm
Rationale: A patient with emphysema (COPD) is at high risk
for spontaneous pneumothorax due to weakened lung tissue.
The forceful cough likely caused a rupture of a bleb, leading
to air in the pleural space. Unilaterally diminished breath
sounds with pleuritic chest pain are classic findings. COPD
exacerbation would typically present with bilateral findings .
5. A pleural effusion is MOST accurately defined as:
A. fluid accumulation outside the lung
B. diffuse collapsing of the alveoli
C. a unilaterally collapsed lung
D. a bacterial infection of the lung tissue
Rationale: A pleural effusion is the abnormal accumulation of
fluid in the pleural space (the space between the visceral and
parietal pleura), which is outside the lung tissue itself. This
fluid can compress the lung and impair ventilation. A collapsed
