NICU COMPREHENSIVE EXAMS 2025/2026 QUESTIONS
AND SOLUTIONS RANKED A+
✔✔Intravenous (IV) - ✔✔A catheter (small tube) placed directly through the skin into the
vein in a baby's hand, arm, foot, leg or scalp. Nutrients, fluids and medications can flow
through this tube. Using an IV is a common route for delivering fluids to newborns and
other patients. Babies' veins are very fragile, so the location of the IV may need to be
changed frequently.
✔✔Intubation - ✔✔Inserting a tube into the trachea (windpipe) through the nose or
mouth to allow air to reach the lungs
✔✔Kangaroo Care - ✔✔Skin-to-skin contact between parent and baby. During
kangaroo care, the baby is placed on the parent's chest, dressed only in a diaper and
sometimes a hat. The baby's head is turned to the side so the baby can hear the
parent's heartbeat and feel the parent's warmth. Kangaroo care is effective, but it's
limited to babies whose condition is not critical.
✔✔Lumbar Puncture (LP) - ✔✔A diagnostic procedure that involves inserting a hollow
needle in between the vertebrae of the lower back to collect a sample of cerebrospinal
fluid for analysis, or, on rare occasions, to relieve increased pressure in the spinal fluid.
Also known as a spinal tap.
✔✔Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) - ✔✔Imaging technique that uses powerful
magnets and computers to produce a detailed picture of tissue.
✔✔Monitor - ✔✔A machine that records information such as heartbeat, body
temperature, respiration rate, and blood pressure.
✔✔Nasal Cannula - ✔✔Light, flexible tube used to give supplemental oxygen to a child.
Oxygen flows through two prongs extending into the nostrils.
✔✔Nasal Prongs - ✔✔Small plastic tubes that fit into or under a baby's nose to deliver
oxygen.
✔✔Nasogastric Tube (NG Tube) - ✔✔Narrow, flexible tube inserted through the nostril,
down the esophagus, and into the stomach. It is used to give food or to remove air or
fluid from the stomach.
✔✔Nebulizer Treatment - ✔✔A nebulizer humidifies air and/or oxygen that is passed to
the infant. At home, a nebulizer is a way of delivering medication—it transforms
medicine into droplet form for inhalation. Used for a variety of lung problems.
✔✔Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) - ✔✔A special care nursery for premature and
newborn infants with severe medical complications. They are cared for by
, neonatologists and nurses with specialty training. There are 3 levels of NICUs. Level 3
NICUs care for any baby that may have, or could have, severe or life-threatening
conditions. Level 2 NICUs care for any newborns that require monitoring after birth and
more than routine newborn care. Level 1 NICUs deliver routine newborn care. Level 1
NICUs are usually reserved for full-term babies, and might not have specialized
equipment or physicians specializing in newborn problems.
✔✔Neonate - ✔✔A term used to describe an infant during the first 30 days of life.
✔✔NPO - ✔✔An abbreviation for a Latin term that means "nothing by mouth"—i.e., no
food or water
✔✔Oxygen Hood - ✔✔A clear plastic box that fits over a baby's head and supplies them
with oxygen. This is used for babies who can breathe on their own, but still need some
extra oxygen.
✔✔Oxygen Therapy - ✔✔Giving extra oxygen to the tissues of the body through the
lungs in a number of ways, including through a ventilator (respirator), mask, nasal
cannula, or plastic oxygen hood or tent. The amount of oxygen given may be measured
as a percentage, and in number of liters, or milliliters, of flow per minute.
✔✔Percutaneous Line/Percutaneous Central Catheter (PICC) Line - ✔✔A long catheter
placed into a surface vein, with the catheter tip extending farther into the body into a
large central vein. A PICC does not have to be replaced as often as a regular IV line.
✔✔Perinatal - ✔✔Around the time of birth. The World Health Organization (WHO)
defines the perinatal period as beginning at "22 weeks (154 days) of gestation (time
when birth weight is normally 500 grams) and ends 7 completed days after birth."
✔✔Phototherapy - ✔✔Light therapy to treat jaundice. The newborn is placed under (or
on top of) special bright blue fluorescent lights (bililights) to help the body break down
the extra bilirubin in the blood. Treatment usually lasts between 3-7 days.
✔✔Postpartum - ✔✔Following birth
✔✔Pulse Oximeter - ✔✔A small device that uses a light sensor to help determine blood
oxygen levels.
✔✔Redirection of Care - ✔✔Changing the medical plan from management designed to
prolong life to comfort measures only (CMO) designed to keep the baby comfortable
without prolonging life
✔✔Room Air - ✔✔The air we normally breathe, which contains 21% oxygen. When
supplemental oxygen is given for respiratory problems, it is in concentrations higher
than 21%.
AND SOLUTIONS RANKED A+
✔✔Intravenous (IV) - ✔✔A catheter (small tube) placed directly through the skin into the
vein in a baby's hand, arm, foot, leg or scalp. Nutrients, fluids and medications can flow
through this tube. Using an IV is a common route for delivering fluids to newborns and
other patients. Babies' veins are very fragile, so the location of the IV may need to be
changed frequently.
✔✔Intubation - ✔✔Inserting a tube into the trachea (windpipe) through the nose or
mouth to allow air to reach the lungs
✔✔Kangaroo Care - ✔✔Skin-to-skin contact between parent and baby. During
kangaroo care, the baby is placed on the parent's chest, dressed only in a diaper and
sometimes a hat. The baby's head is turned to the side so the baby can hear the
parent's heartbeat and feel the parent's warmth. Kangaroo care is effective, but it's
limited to babies whose condition is not critical.
✔✔Lumbar Puncture (LP) - ✔✔A diagnostic procedure that involves inserting a hollow
needle in between the vertebrae of the lower back to collect a sample of cerebrospinal
fluid for analysis, or, on rare occasions, to relieve increased pressure in the spinal fluid.
Also known as a spinal tap.
✔✔Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) - ✔✔Imaging technique that uses powerful
magnets and computers to produce a detailed picture of tissue.
✔✔Monitor - ✔✔A machine that records information such as heartbeat, body
temperature, respiration rate, and blood pressure.
✔✔Nasal Cannula - ✔✔Light, flexible tube used to give supplemental oxygen to a child.
Oxygen flows through two prongs extending into the nostrils.
✔✔Nasal Prongs - ✔✔Small plastic tubes that fit into or under a baby's nose to deliver
oxygen.
✔✔Nasogastric Tube (NG Tube) - ✔✔Narrow, flexible tube inserted through the nostril,
down the esophagus, and into the stomach. It is used to give food or to remove air or
fluid from the stomach.
✔✔Nebulizer Treatment - ✔✔A nebulizer humidifies air and/or oxygen that is passed to
the infant. At home, a nebulizer is a way of delivering medication—it transforms
medicine into droplet form for inhalation. Used for a variety of lung problems.
✔✔Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) - ✔✔A special care nursery for premature and
newborn infants with severe medical complications. They are cared for by
, neonatologists and nurses with specialty training. There are 3 levels of NICUs. Level 3
NICUs care for any baby that may have, or could have, severe or life-threatening
conditions. Level 2 NICUs care for any newborns that require monitoring after birth and
more than routine newborn care. Level 1 NICUs deliver routine newborn care. Level 1
NICUs are usually reserved for full-term babies, and might not have specialized
equipment or physicians specializing in newborn problems.
✔✔Neonate - ✔✔A term used to describe an infant during the first 30 days of life.
✔✔NPO - ✔✔An abbreviation for a Latin term that means "nothing by mouth"—i.e., no
food or water
✔✔Oxygen Hood - ✔✔A clear plastic box that fits over a baby's head and supplies them
with oxygen. This is used for babies who can breathe on their own, but still need some
extra oxygen.
✔✔Oxygen Therapy - ✔✔Giving extra oxygen to the tissues of the body through the
lungs in a number of ways, including through a ventilator (respirator), mask, nasal
cannula, or plastic oxygen hood or tent. The amount of oxygen given may be measured
as a percentage, and in number of liters, or milliliters, of flow per minute.
✔✔Percutaneous Line/Percutaneous Central Catheter (PICC) Line - ✔✔A long catheter
placed into a surface vein, with the catheter tip extending farther into the body into a
large central vein. A PICC does not have to be replaced as often as a regular IV line.
✔✔Perinatal - ✔✔Around the time of birth. The World Health Organization (WHO)
defines the perinatal period as beginning at "22 weeks (154 days) of gestation (time
when birth weight is normally 500 grams) and ends 7 completed days after birth."
✔✔Phototherapy - ✔✔Light therapy to treat jaundice. The newborn is placed under (or
on top of) special bright blue fluorescent lights (bililights) to help the body break down
the extra bilirubin in the blood. Treatment usually lasts between 3-7 days.
✔✔Postpartum - ✔✔Following birth
✔✔Pulse Oximeter - ✔✔A small device that uses a light sensor to help determine blood
oxygen levels.
✔✔Redirection of Care - ✔✔Changing the medical plan from management designed to
prolong life to comfort measures only (CMO) designed to keep the baby comfortable
without prolonging life
✔✔Room Air - ✔✔The air we normally breathe, which contains 21% oxygen. When
supplemental oxygen is given for respiratory problems, it is in concentrations higher
than 21%.
