Porth's Essentials of Pathophysiology Fifth Edition Tommie L.
Norris Test Bank Complete – All Chapters
1) While attending an international nursing conference, many discussions and break-out
sessions focused on the World Health Organization's (WHO) views on health. Of the
following comments made by nurses during a discussion session, which statements
would be considered a good representation of the WHO definition? Select all that apply.
A. Interests in keeping the older adult population engaged in such activities as book
reviews and word games during social time
B. Increase in the number of chair aerobics classes provided in the skilled care facilities
C. Interventions geared toward keeping the older adult population diagnosed with
diabetes mellitus under tight blood glucose control by providing in-home cooking classes
D. Providing transportation for renal dialysis clients to and from their hemodialysis
sessions
E. Providing handwashing teaching sessions to a group of young children
Answer: A, B, C, E
Rationale: WHO definition of health is defined as "a state of complete physical, mental,
and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity." Engaging in
book reviews facilitates mental and social well-being; chair aerobics helps facilitate
physical well-being; and assisting with tight control of diabetes helps with facilitating
physical well-being (even though the person has a chronic disease). Handwashing is vital
in the prevention of disease and spread of germs.
Question format: Multiple Select
Chapter 1: Concepts of Health and Disease
Cognitive Level: Apply
Client Needs: Safe, Effective Care Environment: Management of Care
Reference: p. 2
2. A community health nurse is teaching a group of recent graduates about the large
variety of factors that influence an individual's health or lack thereof. The nurse is
referring to the Healthy People 2020 report from the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services as a teaching example. Of the following aspects discussed, which would
be considered a determinant of health that is outside the focus of this report?
A. The client has a diverse background by being of Asian and Native American/First
Nation descent and practices various alternative therapies to minimize effects of stress.
B. The client has a family history of cardiovascular disease related to
hypercholesterolemia and remains noncompliant with the treatment regime.
C. The client has a good career with exceptional preventive health care benefits.
D. The client lives in an affluent, clean, suburban community with access to many health
care facilities.
Answer: B
Rationale: In Healthy People 2020, the focus is to promote good health to all (such as
using alternative therapies to minimize effects of stress); achieving health equity and
,promoting health for all (which includes having good health care benefits); and
promoting good health (which includes living in a clean community with good access to
health care). Being noncompliant with treatments to control high cholesterol levels with
a family history to CV disease does not meet the "attaining lives free of preventable
disease and premature death" goal/objective.
Question format: Multiple Choice
Chapter 1: Concepts of Health and Disease
Cognitive Level: Apply
Client Needs: Health Promotion and Maintenance
Reference: p. 2
3. A member of the health care team is researching the etiology and pathogenesis of a
number of clients who are under his care in a hospital context. Which aspect of clients'
situations best characterizes pathogenesis rather than etiology?
A. A client who has been exposed to the mycobacterium tuberculosis bacterium.
B. A client who is has increasing serum ammonia levels due to liver cirrhosis.
C. A client who was admitted with the effects of methyl alcohol poisoning.
D. A client with multiple skeletal injuries secondary to a motor vehicle accident.
Answer: B
Rationale: Pathogenesis refers to the progressive and evolutionary course of disease,
such as the increasing ammonia levels that accompany liver disease. Bacteria, poisons,
and traumatic injuries are examples of etiologic factors.
Question format: Multiple Choice
Chapter 1: Concepts of Health and Disease
Cognitive Level: Apply
Client Needs: Physiological Integrity: Physiological Adaptation
Reference: p. 3
4. A new client who suffered a myocardial infarction requires angioplasty and stent
placement. He has arrived to his first cardiac rehabilitation appointment. In this first
session, a review of the pathogenesis of coronary artery disease is addressed. Which
statement by the client verifies to the nurse that he has understood the nurse's
teachings about coronary artery disease?
A. "All I have to do is stop smoking and then I won't have any more heart attacks."
B. "My artery was clogged by fat so I will need to stop eating fatty foods like french fries
every day."
C. "Sounds like this began because of inflammation inside my artery that made it easy to
form fatty streaks which led to my clogged artery."
D. " If you do not exercise regularly to get your heart rate up, blood pools in the veins
causing a clot which stops blood flow to the muscle and you have a heart attack."
Answer: C
Rationale: The true etiology/cause of coronary artery disease (CAD) is unknown;
however, the pathogenesis of the disorder relates to the progression of the inflammatory
process from a fatty streak to the occlusive vessel lesion seen in people with coronary
,artery disease. Risk factors for CAD revolve around cigarette smoking, diet high in fat,
and lack of exercise.
Question format: Multiple Choice
Chapter 1: Concepts of Health and Disease
Cognitive Level: Apply
Client Needs: Physiological Integrity: Physiological Adaptation
Reference: p. 3
5. A 77-year-old man is a hospital inpatient admitted for exacerbation of his chronic
obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and a respiratory therapist (RT) is assessing the
client for the first time. Which aspect of the client's current state of health would be best
characterized as a symptom rather than a sign?
A. The client's oxygen saturation is 83% by pulse oximetry.
B. The client notes that he has increased work of breathing when lying supine.
C. The RT hears diminished breath sounds to the client's lower lung fields bilaterally.
D. The client's respiratory rate is 31 breaths per minute.
Answer: B
Rationale: Symptoms are subjective reports by the person experiencing the health
problem, such as reports of breathing difficulty. Oxygen levels, listening to breath
sounds, and respiratory rate are all objective, observable signs of disease.
Question format: Multiple Choice
Chapter 1: Concepts of Health and Disease
Cognitive Level: Analyze
Client Needs: Physiological Integrity: Physiological Adaptation
Reference: p. 5
6. Which situation would be classified as a complication of a disease or outcome from the
treatment regimen? Select all that apply.
A. Massive pulmonary emboli following diagnosis of new onset atrial fibrillation.
B. Burning, intense incision pain following surgery to remove a portion of colon due to
intestinal aganglionosis.
C. Development of pulmonary fibrosis following treatment with bleomycin, an antibiotic
chemotherapy agent used in treatment of lymphoma.
D. Gradual deterioration in ability to walk unassisted for a client diagnosed with
Parkinson disease.
E. Loss of short-term memory in a client diagnosed with Alzheimer disease.
Answer: A, C
Rationale: Development of pulmonary emboli and pulmonary fibrosis following
chemotherapy are both examples of a complication (adverse extensions of a disease or
outcome from treatment). It is normal to expect incisional pain following surgery. As
Parkinson disease progresses, the ability to walk independently is expected to decrease.
This is a normal progression for people diagnosed with Parkinson disease. Loss of short-
term memory in a client diagnosed with Alzheimer disease is an expected finding.
Question format: Multiple Select
Chapter 1: Concepts of Health and Disease
, Cognitive Level: Analyze
Client Needs: Physiological Integrity: Physiological Adaptation
Reference: p. 3
7. Laboratory testing is ordered for a male client during a clinic visit for routine follow-up
assessment of hypertension. When interpreting lab values, the nurse knows:
A. a normal value represents the test results that fall within the bell curve.
B. if the lab result is above the 50% distribution, the result is considered elevated.
C. all lab values are adjusted for gender and weight.
D. if the result of a very sensitive test is negative, that does not mean the person is
disease free.
Answer: A
Rationale: What is termed a normal value for a laboratory test is established statistically
from results obtained from a selected sample of people. A normal value represents the
test results that fall within the bell curve or the 95% distribution. Some lab values (like
hemoglobin) are adjusted for gender, other comorbidities, or age. If the result of a very
sensitive test is negative, it tells us the person does not have the disease and the
disease has been ruled out or excluded.
Question format: Multiple Choice
Chapter 1: Concepts of Health and Disease
Cognitive Level: Analyze
Client Needs: Physiological Integrity: Reduction of Risk Potential
Reference: p. 1
8. The laboratory technologists are a discussing a new blood test that helps establish a
differential diagnosis between shortness of breath with a cardiac etiology and shortness
of breath with a respiratory/pulmonary etiology. A positive result is purported to indicate
a cardiac etiology. The marketers of the test report that 99.8% of clients who have
confirmed cardiac etiologies test positive in the test. However, 1.3% of clients who do
not have cardiac etiologies for their shortness of breath also test positive. Which
statement best characterizes this blood test?
A. Low validity; high reliability
B. High sensitivity, low specificity
C. High specificity; low reliability
D. High sensitivity; low reliability
Answer: B
Rationale: A large number of clients would receive the correct positive diagnosis (high
sensitivity), while a significant number would receive a false-positive diagnosis (low
specificity). The information given does not indicate low reliability or low validity.
Question format: Multiple Choice
Chapter 1: Concepts of Health and Disease
Cognitive Level: Analyze
Client Needs: Physiological Integrity: Reduction of Risk Potential
Reference: p. 4
Norris Test Bank Complete – All Chapters
1) While attending an international nursing conference, many discussions and break-out
sessions focused on the World Health Organization's (WHO) views on health. Of the
following comments made by nurses during a discussion session, which statements
would be considered a good representation of the WHO definition? Select all that apply.
A. Interests in keeping the older adult population engaged in such activities as book
reviews and word games during social time
B. Increase in the number of chair aerobics classes provided in the skilled care facilities
C. Interventions geared toward keeping the older adult population diagnosed with
diabetes mellitus under tight blood glucose control by providing in-home cooking classes
D. Providing transportation for renal dialysis clients to and from their hemodialysis
sessions
E. Providing handwashing teaching sessions to a group of young children
Answer: A, B, C, E
Rationale: WHO definition of health is defined as "a state of complete physical, mental,
and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity." Engaging in
book reviews facilitates mental and social well-being; chair aerobics helps facilitate
physical well-being; and assisting with tight control of diabetes helps with facilitating
physical well-being (even though the person has a chronic disease). Handwashing is vital
in the prevention of disease and spread of germs.
Question format: Multiple Select
Chapter 1: Concepts of Health and Disease
Cognitive Level: Apply
Client Needs: Safe, Effective Care Environment: Management of Care
Reference: p. 2
2. A community health nurse is teaching a group of recent graduates about the large
variety of factors that influence an individual's health or lack thereof. The nurse is
referring to the Healthy People 2020 report from the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services as a teaching example. Of the following aspects discussed, which would
be considered a determinant of health that is outside the focus of this report?
A. The client has a diverse background by being of Asian and Native American/First
Nation descent and practices various alternative therapies to minimize effects of stress.
B. The client has a family history of cardiovascular disease related to
hypercholesterolemia and remains noncompliant with the treatment regime.
C. The client has a good career with exceptional preventive health care benefits.
D. The client lives in an affluent, clean, suburban community with access to many health
care facilities.
Answer: B
Rationale: In Healthy People 2020, the focus is to promote good health to all (such as
using alternative therapies to minimize effects of stress); achieving health equity and
,promoting health for all (which includes having good health care benefits); and
promoting good health (which includes living in a clean community with good access to
health care). Being noncompliant with treatments to control high cholesterol levels with
a family history to CV disease does not meet the "attaining lives free of preventable
disease and premature death" goal/objective.
Question format: Multiple Choice
Chapter 1: Concepts of Health and Disease
Cognitive Level: Apply
Client Needs: Health Promotion and Maintenance
Reference: p. 2
3. A member of the health care team is researching the etiology and pathogenesis of a
number of clients who are under his care in a hospital context. Which aspect of clients'
situations best characterizes pathogenesis rather than etiology?
A. A client who has been exposed to the mycobacterium tuberculosis bacterium.
B. A client who is has increasing serum ammonia levels due to liver cirrhosis.
C. A client who was admitted with the effects of methyl alcohol poisoning.
D. A client with multiple skeletal injuries secondary to a motor vehicle accident.
Answer: B
Rationale: Pathogenesis refers to the progressive and evolutionary course of disease,
such as the increasing ammonia levels that accompany liver disease. Bacteria, poisons,
and traumatic injuries are examples of etiologic factors.
Question format: Multiple Choice
Chapter 1: Concepts of Health and Disease
Cognitive Level: Apply
Client Needs: Physiological Integrity: Physiological Adaptation
Reference: p. 3
4. A new client who suffered a myocardial infarction requires angioplasty and stent
placement. He has arrived to his first cardiac rehabilitation appointment. In this first
session, a review of the pathogenesis of coronary artery disease is addressed. Which
statement by the client verifies to the nurse that he has understood the nurse's
teachings about coronary artery disease?
A. "All I have to do is stop smoking and then I won't have any more heart attacks."
B. "My artery was clogged by fat so I will need to stop eating fatty foods like french fries
every day."
C. "Sounds like this began because of inflammation inside my artery that made it easy to
form fatty streaks which led to my clogged artery."
D. " If you do not exercise regularly to get your heart rate up, blood pools in the veins
causing a clot which stops blood flow to the muscle and you have a heart attack."
Answer: C
Rationale: The true etiology/cause of coronary artery disease (CAD) is unknown;
however, the pathogenesis of the disorder relates to the progression of the inflammatory
process from a fatty streak to the occlusive vessel lesion seen in people with coronary
,artery disease. Risk factors for CAD revolve around cigarette smoking, diet high in fat,
and lack of exercise.
Question format: Multiple Choice
Chapter 1: Concepts of Health and Disease
Cognitive Level: Apply
Client Needs: Physiological Integrity: Physiological Adaptation
Reference: p. 3
5. A 77-year-old man is a hospital inpatient admitted for exacerbation of his chronic
obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and a respiratory therapist (RT) is assessing the
client for the first time. Which aspect of the client's current state of health would be best
characterized as a symptom rather than a sign?
A. The client's oxygen saturation is 83% by pulse oximetry.
B. The client notes that he has increased work of breathing when lying supine.
C. The RT hears diminished breath sounds to the client's lower lung fields bilaterally.
D. The client's respiratory rate is 31 breaths per minute.
Answer: B
Rationale: Symptoms are subjective reports by the person experiencing the health
problem, such as reports of breathing difficulty. Oxygen levels, listening to breath
sounds, and respiratory rate are all objective, observable signs of disease.
Question format: Multiple Choice
Chapter 1: Concepts of Health and Disease
Cognitive Level: Analyze
Client Needs: Physiological Integrity: Physiological Adaptation
Reference: p. 5
6. Which situation would be classified as a complication of a disease or outcome from the
treatment regimen? Select all that apply.
A. Massive pulmonary emboli following diagnosis of new onset atrial fibrillation.
B. Burning, intense incision pain following surgery to remove a portion of colon due to
intestinal aganglionosis.
C. Development of pulmonary fibrosis following treatment with bleomycin, an antibiotic
chemotherapy agent used in treatment of lymphoma.
D. Gradual deterioration in ability to walk unassisted for a client diagnosed with
Parkinson disease.
E. Loss of short-term memory in a client diagnosed with Alzheimer disease.
Answer: A, C
Rationale: Development of pulmonary emboli and pulmonary fibrosis following
chemotherapy are both examples of a complication (adverse extensions of a disease or
outcome from treatment). It is normal to expect incisional pain following surgery. As
Parkinson disease progresses, the ability to walk independently is expected to decrease.
This is a normal progression for people diagnosed with Parkinson disease. Loss of short-
term memory in a client diagnosed with Alzheimer disease is an expected finding.
Question format: Multiple Select
Chapter 1: Concepts of Health and Disease
, Cognitive Level: Analyze
Client Needs: Physiological Integrity: Physiological Adaptation
Reference: p. 3
7. Laboratory testing is ordered for a male client during a clinic visit for routine follow-up
assessment of hypertension. When interpreting lab values, the nurse knows:
A. a normal value represents the test results that fall within the bell curve.
B. if the lab result is above the 50% distribution, the result is considered elevated.
C. all lab values are adjusted for gender and weight.
D. if the result of a very sensitive test is negative, that does not mean the person is
disease free.
Answer: A
Rationale: What is termed a normal value for a laboratory test is established statistically
from results obtained from a selected sample of people. A normal value represents the
test results that fall within the bell curve or the 95% distribution. Some lab values (like
hemoglobin) are adjusted for gender, other comorbidities, or age. If the result of a very
sensitive test is negative, it tells us the person does not have the disease and the
disease has been ruled out or excluded.
Question format: Multiple Choice
Chapter 1: Concepts of Health and Disease
Cognitive Level: Analyze
Client Needs: Physiological Integrity: Reduction of Risk Potential
Reference: p. 1
8. The laboratory technologists are a discussing a new blood test that helps establish a
differential diagnosis between shortness of breath with a cardiac etiology and shortness
of breath with a respiratory/pulmonary etiology. A positive result is purported to indicate
a cardiac etiology. The marketers of the test report that 99.8% of clients who have
confirmed cardiac etiologies test positive in the test. However, 1.3% of clients who do
not have cardiac etiologies for their shortness of breath also test positive. Which
statement best characterizes this blood test?
A. Low validity; high reliability
B. High sensitivity, low specificity
C. High specificity; low reliability
D. High sensitivity; low reliability
Answer: B
Rationale: A large number of clients would receive the correct positive diagnosis (high
sensitivity), while a significant number would receive a false-positive diagnosis (low
specificity). The information given does not indicate low reliability or low validity.
Question format: Multiple Choice
Chapter 1: Concepts of Health and Disease
Cognitive Level: Analyze
Client Needs: Physiological Integrity: Reduction of Risk Potential
Reference: p. 4
