AAOS EMT (Chapter 10) Patient Assessment
Questions and Correct Solutions 2024
Accessory Muscles - Answer -The secondary muscles of respiration. They include the neck muscles
(sternocleidomastoids), the chest pectorals major muscles, and the abdominal muscles.
Altered Mental Status - Answer -A change in the way a person thinks and behaves that may signal
disease in the central nervous system or elsewhere in the body.
Auscultate - Answer -To listen to sounds within an organ with a stethoscope.
AVPU Scale - Answer -A method of assessing the level of consciousness by determining whether the
patient is awake and alert, responsive to verbal stimuli or pain, or unresponsive; used principally early in
the assessment process.
Blood Pressure - Answer -The pressure that the blood exerts against the walls of the arteries as it passes
through them.
Bradycardia - Answer -A slow heart rate, less than 60 beats per minute.
Breath Sounds - Answer -An indication of air movement in the lungs, usually assessed with a
stethoscope.
Capillary Refill - Answer -A test that evaluates distal circulatory system function by squeezing (blanching)
blood from an area such as a nail bed and watching the speed of its return after releasing the pressure.
Capnography - Answer -A noninvasive method to quickly and efficiently provide information on a
patient's ventilatory status, circulation, and metabolism; effectively measures the concentration of
carbon dioxide in expired air over time.
Carbon Dioxide - Answer -A component of air that typically makes up 0.03% of air at sea level; also a
waste product exhaled during expiration by the respiratory system.
Chief Complaint - Answer -The reason a patient called for help; also, the patient's response to questions
such as "What's wrong?" or "What happened?"
Conjunctiva - Answer -The delicate membrane that lines the eyelids and covers the exposed surface of
the eye.
Crackles - Answer -A crackling, rattling breath sound that signals fluid in the air spaces of the lungs.
Crepitus - Answer -A grating or grinding sensation caused by fractured bone ends or joints rubbing
together.
, Cyanosis - Answer -A blue skin discoloration that is caused by a reduced level of oxygen in the blood.
DCAP-BTLS - Answer -A mnemonic for assessment in which each area of the body is evaluated for
Deformities, Contusions, Abrasions, Punctures/Penetrations, Burns, Tenderness, Lacerations, and
Swelling.
Diaphoretic - Answer -Characterized by light or profuse sweating.
Diastolic Pressure - Answer -The pressure that remains in the arteries during the relaxing phase of the
hearts cycle (diastole) when the left ventricle is at rest.
Distracting Injury - Answer -Any injury that prevents the patient from noticing other injuries he or she
may have, even severe injuries; for example, a painful femur or tibia fracture that prevents the patient
from noticing back pain associated with a spinal fracture.
Field Impression - Answer -The conclusion about the cause of the patient's condition after considering
the situation, history, and examination findings.
Focused Assessment - Answer -A type of physical assessment typically performed on patients who have
sustained nonsignificant mechanisms of injury or on responsive medical patients. This type of
examination is based on the chief complaint and focuses on one body system or part.
Frostbite - Answer -Damage to tissues as the result of exposure to cold; frozen or partially frozen body
parts are frostbitten.
General Impression - Answer -The overall initial impression that determines the priority for patient care;
based on the patient's surroundings, the mechanism of injury, signs and symptoms, and the chief
complaint.
Golden Hour - Answer -The time from injury to definitive care, during which treatment of shock and
traumatic injuries should occur because survival potential is best; also called the Golden Period.
Guarding - Answer -Involuntary muscle contractions (spasm) of the abdominal wall; an effort to protect
the inflamed abdomen.
History Taking - Answer -A step within the patient assessment process that provides detail about the
patient's chief complaint and an account of the patient's signs and symptoms.
Hypertension - Answer -Blood Pressure that is higher than the normal range.
Hypotension - Answer -Blood pressure that is lower than the normal range.
Hypothermia - Answer -A condition in which the internal body temperature falls below 95°F (35°C).
Incident Command System - Answer -A system implemented to manage disasters and mass- and
multiple-casualty incidents in which section chiefs, including finance, logistics, operations, and planning,
report to the incident commander.
Questions and Correct Solutions 2024
Accessory Muscles - Answer -The secondary muscles of respiration. They include the neck muscles
(sternocleidomastoids), the chest pectorals major muscles, and the abdominal muscles.
Altered Mental Status - Answer -A change in the way a person thinks and behaves that may signal
disease in the central nervous system or elsewhere in the body.
Auscultate - Answer -To listen to sounds within an organ with a stethoscope.
AVPU Scale - Answer -A method of assessing the level of consciousness by determining whether the
patient is awake and alert, responsive to verbal stimuli or pain, or unresponsive; used principally early in
the assessment process.
Blood Pressure - Answer -The pressure that the blood exerts against the walls of the arteries as it passes
through them.
Bradycardia - Answer -A slow heart rate, less than 60 beats per minute.
Breath Sounds - Answer -An indication of air movement in the lungs, usually assessed with a
stethoscope.
Capillary Refill - Answer -A test that evaluates distal circulatory system function by squeezing (blanching)
blood from an area such as a nail bed and watching the speed of its return after releasing the pressure.
Capnography - Answer -A noninvasive method to quickly and efficiently provide information on a
patient's ventilatory status, circulation, and metabolism; effectively measures the concentration of
carbon dioxide in expired air over time.
Carbon Dioxide - Answer -A component of air that typically makes up 0.03% of air at sea level; also a
waste product exhaled during expiration by the respiratory system.
Chief Complaint - Answer -The reason a patient called for help; also, the patient's response to questions
such as "What's wrong?" or "What happened?"
Conjunctiva - Answer -The delicate membrane that lines the eyelids and covers the exposed surface of
the eye.
Crackles - Answer -A crackling, rattling breath sound that signals fluid in the air spaces of the lungs.
Crepitus - Answer -A grating or grinding sensation caused by fractured bone ends or joints rubbing
together.
, Cyanosis - Answer -A blue skin discoloration that is caused by a reduced level of oxygen in the blood.
DCAP-BTLS - Answer -A mnemonic for assessment in which each area of the body is evaluated for
Deformities, Contusions, Abrasions, Punctures/Penetrations, Burns, Tenderness, Lacerations, and
Swelling.
Diaphoretic - Answer -Characterized by light or profuse sweating.
Diastolic Pressure - Answer -The pressure that remains in the arteries during the relaxing phase of the
hearts cycle (diastole) when the left ventricle is at rest.
Distracting Injury - Answer -Any injury that prevents the patient from noticing other injuries he or she
may have, even severe injuries; for example, a painful femur or tibia fracture that prevents the patient
from noticing back pain associated with a spinal fracture.
Field Impression - Answer -The conclusion about the cause of the patient's condition after considering
the situation, history, and examination findings.
Focused Assessment - Answer -A type of physical assessment typically performed on patients who have
sustained nonsignificant mechanisms of injury or on responsive medical patients. This type of
examination is based on the chief complaint and focuses on one body system or part.
Frostbite - Answer -Damage to tissues as the result of exposure to cold; frozen or partially frozen body
parts are frostbitten.
General Impression - Answer -The overall initial impression that determines the priority for patient care;
based on the patient's surroundings, the mechanism of injury, signs and symptoms, and the chief
complaint.
Golden Hour - Answer -The time from injury to definitive care, during which treatment of shock and
traumatic injuries should occur because survival potential is best; also called the Golden Period.
Guarding - Answer -Involuntary muscle contractions (spasm) of the abdominal wall; an effort to protect
the inflamed abdomen.
History Taking - Answer -A step within the patient assessment process that provides detail about the
patient's chief complaint and an account of the patient's signs and symptoms.
Hypertension - Answer -Blood Pressure that is higher than the normal range.
Hypotension - Answer -Blood pressure that is lower than the normal range.
Hypothermia - Answer -A condition in which the internal body temperature falls below 95°F (35°C).
Incident Command System - Answer -A system implemented to manage disasters and mass- and
multiple-casualty incidents in which section chiefs, including finance, logistics, operations, and planning,
report to the incident commander.
