FHEA - EXAM 3 2025 QUESTIONS AND
ANSWERS
The mom of a patient who sustained a concussion while skiing asks the NP, “If my child had a
brain injury, why can’t you see anything when you scan his head?” The NP knows:
A. Concussions are always visible on imaging.
B. A concussion is a functional injury, not structural
C. The injury will not show on imaging initially.
D. Imaging is never indicated in concussion.
B. A concussion is a functional injury, not structural
Possible symptoms of concussion include all of the following except:
A. Clear nasal discharge
B. Headache
C. Nausea
D. Amnesia of minutes leading up to the event.
A. Clear nasal discharge
You are discharging a patient from urgent care after being seen for concussion sustained
while playing sports. As you review the return precautions, the parents ask you how long
children experience symptoms of concussion on average. You know to explain:
A. Most children have intermittent symptoms for years following injury.
B. The symptoms resolve within 1-2 days for the majority of children.
C. Most children experience resolution of symptoms within 3 weeks.
D. The symptoms get worse for most children before they improve.
C. Most children experience resolution of symptoms within 3 weeks.
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,A 14-year-old female patient is brought to the urgent care after crashing into another player
on the hockey rink during a tournament. The patient and parents report that the two players
collided, and the patient fell backwards hitting her head on the ice. She was wearing a
helmet, however she was briefly unconscious. On physical exam, the patient appears
cognitively intact but has cervical pain. The NP states that she would like to do some
additional testing. The parents ask if it can wait because the patient would like to return to
the tournament with her team. The NP considers:
A. The patient was wearing a helmet, so serious injury is unlikely.
B. The patient should be allowed to return to her teammates and can come back later.
C. The patient should learn to tough it out in order to stay in competitive sports.
D. The patient needs monitoring and further work-up now due to her HPI and PE findings.
D. The patient needs monitoring and further work-up now due to her HPI and PE findings.
It is important to document a thorough neurological exam on a patient with possible
concussion because (select all that apply):
A. A baseline to compare to is crucial for monitoring.
B. Neurologic findings may not appear immediately.
C. The coach will need to know the details of the exam.
D. A patient cannot return to school without seeing neurology.
B. Neurologic findings may not appear immediately.
Which of the following patients would be most at risk for prolonged concussion
symptomatology?
A. A patient with a headache 5 days after injury.
B. A patient with multiple concussions over the course of 5 years.
C. A patient with underlying anxiety.
D. A patient with vomiting immediately after the injury.
B. A patient with multiple concussions over the course of 5 years.
An NP is seeing a patient in urgent care following a playground accident and diagnoses
concussion. The patient complained of dizziness at the time of the event that resolved, but he
continues to have a headache now 2 hours post-injury. His exam is otherwise normal. Which
of the following discharge plans would be appropriate?
A. Follow-up with a pediatrician in 2-7 days or soon with worsening symptoms.
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,B. Refer to ED now for head CT to rule out more serious injury.
C. No follow-up recommended.
D. Wake the patient up every 2 hours throughout the night.
A. Follow-up with a pediatrician in 2-7 days or soon with worsening symptoms.
An NP is seeing a patient in urgent care following a playground accident and diagnoses
concussion. The patient complained of dizziness at the time of the event that resolved, but he
continues to have a headache now 2 hours post-injury. When preparing for discharge, the
mother asks if the patient can play outside. The NP recommends:
A. He must rest in a dark room with no stimulation for the next 48 hours.
B. He cannot play outside until all his symptoms have completely resolved due to risk of re-
injury.
C. He can play outside as soon as he returns home since the concussion is mild.
D. He should rest quietly for the rest of the day, but can return to light activity with safety
precautions to avoid additional injury in 24-48 hours.
D. He should rest quietly for the rest of the day, but can return to light activity with safety
precautions to avoid additional injury in 24-48 hours.
An adolescent with concussion reports that her older brother was not allowed to use
electronics for a week after sustaining a concussion and wonders if she also has to avoid
electronics. The NP knows to counsel that:
A. All electronic devices should be avoided until full symptom resolution.
B. There is no evidence that use of electronics worsens outcomes
C. The recommendation is for absolute rest including avoiding all visual and auditory
stimulation.
D. Electronic devices should only be used for 1 hour a day until full-recovery.
B. There is no evidence that use of electronics worsens outcomes
A 10-year-old patient presents to the urgent care with his dad. The dad reports they were
seen 12 days ago and the child was diagnosed with a concussion. He states the headaches
now seem to be worsening and the child seems withdrawn and more tired than usual. The NP
knows:
A. This is a normal progression of symptoms in pediatric concussion.
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, B. This patient may be experiencing post-concussive syndrome and needs to be seen by a
specialist.
C. These symptoms are not likely related to the concussion and something else must be going
on.
D. The patient should be counseled to retire from all sports at this time.
B. This patient may be experiencing post-concussive syndrome and needs to be seen by a
specialist.
All of the following are red flags in a patient with headache except:
A. Cognitive impairment
B. Worst headache of one’s life
C. Gradual onset
D. Age >50years
C. Gradual onset
A 32-year-old male patient reports a headache for 3 days that feels like his head is being
“squeezed like a lemon.” He denies nausea and vomiting, but is wearing sunglasses in the ED
because the bright lights make the headache worse. His physical exam is otherwise within
normal limits. He has been attending work and is stressed from changes happening at his job.
He reports he has not taken any medication because he has tried ibuprofen in the past and it
“never works.” The NP’s next best step is:
A. Order a head CT without contrast
B. Discharge patient with Rest, PT, and NSAIDs
C. Consult neurology
D. Order ESR, CRP, and TSH
B. Discharge patient with Rest, PT, and NSAIDs
A 27-year-old patient (they/them) reports to the NP that they had a period of time 2 years
ago where they were getting severe headaches on one side of their head that caused them to
go to the ED in the middle of the night for pain relief and because their eye would become
swollen. They have not had a headache like this for the last couple years, and have no
additional medical history or sequelae from the headaches. The NP knows that this likely
describes:
A. Tension headaches
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ANSWERS
The mom of a patient who sustained a concussion while skiing asks the NP, “If my child had a
brain injury, why can’t you see anything when you scan his head?” The NP knows:
A. Concussions are always visible on imaging.
B. A concussion is a functional injury, not structural
C. The injury will not show on imaging initially.
D. Imaging is never indicated in concussion.
B. A concussion is a functional injury, not structural
Possible symptoms of concussion include all of the following except:
A. Clear nasal discharge
B. Headache
C. Nausea
D. Amnesia of minutes leading up to the event.
A. Clear nasal discharge
You are discharging a patient from urgent care after being seen for concussion sustained
while playing sports. As you review the return precautions, the parents ask you how long
children experience symptoms of concussion on average. You know to explain:
A. Most children have intermittent symptoms for years following injury.
B. The symptoms resolve within 1-2 days for the majority of children.
C. Most children experience resolution of symptoms within 3 weeks.
D. The symptoms get worse for most children before they improve.
C. Most children experience resolution of symptoms within 3 weeks.
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,A 14-year-old female patient is brought to the urgent care after crashing into another player
on the hockey rink during a tournament. The patient and parents report that the two players
collided, and the patient fell backwards hitting her head on the ice. She was wearing a
helmet, however she was briefly unconscious. On physical exam, the patient appears
cognitively intact but has cervical pain. The NP states that she would like to do some
additional testing. The parents ask if it can wait because the patient would like to return to
the tournament with her team. The NP considers:
A. The patient was wearing a helmet, so serious injury is unlikely.
B. The patient should be allowed to return to her teammates and can come back later.
C. The patient should learn to tough it out in order to stay in competitive sports.
D. The patient needs monitoring and further work-up now due to her HPI and PE findings.
D. The patient needs monitoring and further work-up now due to her HPI and PE findings.
It is important to document a thorough neurological exam on a patient with possible
concussion because (select all that apply):
A. A baseline to compare to is crucial for monitoring.
B. Neurologic findings may not appear immediately.
C. The coach will need to know the details of the exam.
D. A patient cannot return to school without seeing neurology.
B. Neurologic findings may not appear immediately.
Which of the following patients would be most at risk for prolonged concussion
symptomatology?
A. A patient with a headache 5 days after injury.
B. A patient with multiple concussions over the course of 5 years.
C. A patient with underlying anxiety.
D. A patient with vomiting immediately after the injury.
B. A patient with multiple concussions over the course of 5 years.
An NP is seeing a patient in urgent care following a playground accident and diagnoses
concussion. The patient complained of dizziness at the time of the event that resolved, but he
continues to have a headache now 2 hours post-injury. His exam is otherwise normal. Which
of the following discharge plans would be appropriate?
A. Follow-up with a pediatrician in 2-7 days or soon with worsening symptoms.
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,B. Refer to ED now for head CT to rule out more serious injury.
C. No follow-up recommended.
D. Wake the patient up every 2 hours throughout the night.
A. Follow-up with a pediatrician in 2-7 days or soon with worsening symptoms.
An NP is seeing a patient in urgent care following a playground accident and diagnoses
concussion. The patient complained of dizziness at the time of the event that resolved, but he
continues to have a headache now 2 hours post-injury. When preparing for discharge, the
mother asks if the patient can play outside. The NP recommends:
A. He must rest in a dark room with no stimulation for the next 48 hours.
B. He cannot play outside until all his symptoms have completely resolved due to risk of re-
injury.
C. He can play outside as soon as he returns home since the concussion is mild.
D. He should rest quietly for the rest of the day, but can return to light activity with safety
precautions to avoid additional injury in 24-48 hours.
D. He should rest quietly for the rest of the day, but can return to light activity with safety
precautions to avoid additional injury in 24-48 hours.
An adolescent with concussion reports that her older brother was not allowed to use
electronics for a week after sustaining a concussion and wonders if she also has to avoid
electronics. The NP knows to counsel that:
A. All electronic devices should be avoided until full symptom resolution.
B. There is no evidence that use of electronics worsens outcomes
C. The recommendation is for absolute rest including avoiding all visual and auditory
stimulation.
D. Electronic devices should only be used for 1 hour a day until full-recovery.
B. There is no evidence that use of electronics worsens outcomes
A 10-year-old patient presents to the urgent care with his dad. The dad reports they were
seen 12 days ago and the child was diagnosed with a concussion. He states the headaches
now seem to be worsening and the child seems withdrawn and more tired than usual. The NP
knows:
A. This is a normal progression of symptoms in pediatric concussion.
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, B. This patient may be experiencing post-concussive syndrome and needs to be seen by a
specialist.
C. These symptoms are not likely related to the concussion and something else must be going
on.
D. The patient should be counseled to retire from all sports at this time.
B. This patient may be experiencing post-concussive syndrome and needs to be seen by a
specialist.
All of the following are red flags in a patient with headache except:
A. Cognitive impairment
B. Worst headache of one’s life
C. Gradual onset
D. Age >50years
C. Gradual onset
A 32-year-old male patient reports a headache for 3 days that feels like his head is being
“squeezed like a lemon.” He denies nausea and vomiting, but is wearing sunglasses in the ED
because the bright lights make the headache worse. His physical exam is otherwise within
normal limits. He has been attending work and is stressed from changes happening at his job.
He reports he has not taken any medication because he has tried ibuprofen in the past and it
“never works.” The NP’s next best step is:
A. Order a head CT without contrast
B. Discharge patient with Rest, PT, and NSAIDs
C. Consult neurology
D. Order ESR, CRP, and TSH
B. Discharge patient with Rest, PT, and NSAIDs
A 27-year-old patient (they/them) reports to the NP that they had a period of time 2 years
ago where they were getting severe headaches on one side of their head that caused them to
go to the ED in the middle of the night for pain relief and because their eye would become
swollen. They have not had a headache like this for the last couple years, and have no
additional medical history or sequelae from the headaches. The NP knows that this likely
describes:
A. Tension headaches
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