OEC Exam Questions with Correct Answers

OEC Exam Questions with Correct Answers A patient has sustained an injury to his mediastinum. Based on the anatomy of his chest, which of the following structures may have been injured? - Answer-The Esophagus An OEC candidate asks you to explain a pneumothorax. Your response should be that it occurs when: - Answer-air accumulates between the inner chest wall and the outside of the lung, causing the lung to collapse. When assessing a patient, which of the following signs or symptoms is most indicative that the patient is suffering from a pneumothorax? - Answer-Decreased breath sounds in the right lung Which of the following phrases best describes a flail segment? - Answer-Two or more adjacent ribs that have been broken in two or more places. Your patient was involved in a serious motor vehicle collision. Which of the following assessment findings best helps to determine that the patient has a flail segment? - Answer-Paradoxical chest wall movement You are managing a patient with a large flail segment in the right lateral chest. The immediate threat to this patient's life is: - Answer-hypoxia. A patient with blunt chest trauma has paradoxical chest movement. She is conscious and confused and is breathing rapidly and shallowly. After manually stabilizing the flail section of the chest wall, you should: - Answer-administer oxygen through a nonrebreather facemask. You are assisting at an accident scene and are asked to apply a dressing over a sucking chest wound on the patient's left anterior chest wall. Which of the following items would you use? - Answer-Vaseline gauze You have placed an occlusive dressing on a puncture wound on the right side of the chest of a 33-year-old woman. During your ongoing assessment your primary concern is monitoring the injury for: - Answer-tension pneumothorax. An OEC candidate indicates that she understands the difference between a pneumothorax and a tension pneumothorax when she makes which of the following statements? - Answer-"A tension pneumothorax can cause cardiac output to decrease; a pneumothorax does not." You suspect that a trauma patient is suffering from a hemothorax to the left lung. Which of the following assessment findings would reinforce your suspicion? - AnswerRespiratory distress and the signs and symptoms of shock You are listening to two patrollers discuss the accident to which they just responded. Which of the following injuries would lead you to believe that one of the patients had suffered from traumatic asphyxia? - Answer-Bluish discoloration of the neck and face The thorax is enclosed by the: - Answer-ribs, sternum, thoracic spine, and diaphragm. The heart and lungs are located in the: - Answer-thoracic cavity. The diaphragm separates the: - Answer-thoracic cavity from the abdominal cavity. Your 35-year-old patient has received major chest trauma. He complains of shortness of breath and pain. Your assessment reveals distended neck veins and pulsus paradoxus. Based on these signs and symptoms, you believe the patient to be suffering from: - Answer-pericardial tamponade. The most serious chest injury resulting from rapid deceleration is - Answer-aortic rupture. Commotio cordis is sudden cardiac death resulting from - Answer-blunt trauma, usually in children younger than 16 years old. You are instructing a class in Outdoor Emergency Care when a student asks you to explain the L.A.P. method of examining the thorax. Your best reply to this question would be which of the following statements? - Answer-"The L.A.P. method directs you to look, auscultate, and palpate the chest." You are treating a 26-year-old man who fell about 20 feet while rock climbing. He is complaining of right sided chest discomfort and dyspnea. You note that his respiratory rate is 28 and shallow. Based on this assessment, the best emergency care would be: - Answer-performing a rapid body survey and assisting ventilations with BVM and highflow oxygen.