ADVANCED HEALTH ASSESSMENT AND
DIAGNOSTIC REASONING 4TH EDITION
RHOADS EXAM SCRIPT 2026 TESTED
QUESTIONS WITH COMPLETE ANSWERS
⩥ Waist Circumference. Answer: Risk if over 35in for women
Risk if over 40in for men
⩥ Cranial Nerves. Answer: 1. Olfactory: Sensory
2. Optic: Sensory
3. Occulomotor: Motor
4. Trochlear: Motor
5. Trigeminal: Both
6. Abducens: Motor
7. Facial: Both
8. Acoustic: Sensory
9. Glossopharyngeal: Both
10. Vagus: Both
11. Spinal Accessory: Motor
12. Hypoglossal: Motor
,⩥ Romberg Test. Answer: Stand with hands to the sides and eyes closed,
observe swaying
⩥ Pronator Drift. Answer: Stand with arms out, eyes closed, and hands
supine -- watch for hands pronating.
⩥ Graphesthesia. Answer: The inability to recognize numbers written on
the hand. Suggests a lesion in the sensory cortex.
⩥ Astereognosis:. Answer: Inability to recognize objects placed in the
hand
⩥ Kernig. Answer: Flex patient's leg at hip and knee, then straighten the
knee. Discomfort behind the knee during full extension should not cause
pain.
⩥ Brudzinski. Answer: Pt supine, your hands behind pt's head and flex
the neck forward, until chin touches the chest if possible. Neck stiffness
with resistance and flexion of hips and knees is a positive sign. May be a
sign of acute bacterial meningitis or subarachnoid hemorrhage
⩥ Straight Leg Raising. Answer: Lift the straight leg, if pt has low back
pain with nerve pain that radiates down the leg = sciatica from
compression of the spinal nerve root as it passes through the vertebral
foramen
, ⩥ Plantar (Babinski) Reflex. Answer: Dorsiflexion of the big toe is a
positive Babinski response from a CNS lesion in the corticospinal tract
⩥ Finkelstein Test. Answer: Pt grabs thumb with hand and you pull
down to see if there is tendon tenderness - if positive, might mean
tendonitis
⩥ Tinel's Sign. Answer: Tap on the Median Nerve
⩥ Phalen's Test. Answer: Bend wrists at 90 degrees and put back of
hands against each other for 1 minute and see if there is
numbness/tingling
⩥ Ballotment. Answer: Leg extended, compress the suprapatellar pouch
and then push the patella sharply against the femur, watching for fluid
returning to the pouch
⩥ Bulge Sign. Answer: Knee extended, hand on knee above the patella
and milk downward. Apply medial pressure and tap laterally. Watch for a
fluid wave
⩥ Drawer Sign. Answer: Pt supine with knee flexed, your thumbs at the
medial/lateral joint line and fingers wrapped around. Then sharply
push/pull, watching for laxity
DIAGNOSTIC REASONING 4TH EDITION
RHOADS EXAM SCRIPT 2026 TESTED
QUESTIONS WITH COMPLETE ANSWERS
⩥ Waist Circumference. Answer: Risk if over 35in for women
Risk if over 40in for men
⩥ Cranial Nerves. Answer: 1. Olfactory: Sensory
2. Optic: Sensory
3. Occulomotor: Motor
4. Trochlear: Motor
5. Trigeminal: Both
6. Abducens: Motor
7. Facial: Both
8. Acoustic: Sensory
9. Glossopharyngeal: Both
10. Vagus: Both
11. Spinal Accessory: Motor
12. Hypoglossal: Motor
,⩥ Romberg Test. Answer: Stand with hands to the sides and eyes closed,
observe swaying
⩥ Pronator Drift. Answer: Stand with arms out, eyes closed, and hands
supine -- watch for hands pronating.
⩥ Graphesthesia. Answer: The inability to recognize numbers written on
the hand. Suggests a lesion in the sensory cortex.
⩥ Astereognosis:. Answer: Inability to recognize objects placed in the
hand
⩥ Kernig. Answer: Flex patient's leg at hip and knee, then straighten the
knee. Discomfort behind the knee during full extension should not cause
pain.
⩥ Brudzinski. Answer: Pt supine, your hands behind pt's head and flex
the neck forward, until chin touches the chest if possible. Neck stiffness
with resistance and flexion of hips and knees is a positive sign. May be a
sign of acute bacterial meningitis or subarachnoid hemorrhage
⩥ Straight Leg Raising. Answer: Lift the straight leg, if pt has low back
pain with nerve pain that radiates down the leg = sciatica from
compression of the spinal nerve root as it passes through the vertebral
foramen
, ⩥ Plantar (Babinski) Reflex. Answer: Dorsiflexion of the big toe is a
positive Babinski response from a CNS lesion in the corticospinal tract
⩥ Finkelstein Test. Answer: Pt grabs thumb with hand and you pull
down to see if there is tendon tenderness - if positive, might mean
tendonitis
⩥ Tinel's Sign. Answer: Tap on the Median Nerve
⩥ Phalen's Test. Answer: Bend wrists at 90 degrees and put back of
hands against each other for 1 minute and see if there is
numbness/tingling
⩥ Ballotment. Answer: Leg extended, compress the suprapatellar pouch
and then push the patella sharply against the femur, watching for fluid
returning to the pouch
⩥ Bulge Sign. Answer: Knee extended, hand on knee above the patella
and milk downward. Apply medial pressure and tap laterally. Watch for a
fluid wave
⩥ Drawer Sign. Answer: Pt supine with knee flexed, your thumbs at the
medial/lateral joint line and fingers wrapped around. Then sharply
push/pull, watching for laxity
