ULTRASOUND TECHNICIAN – ARDMS EXAM QUESTIONS AND
CORRECT ANSWERS (VERIFIED ANSWERS) PLUS RATIONALES
2026|2027 Q&A | INSTANT DOWNLOAD PDF
1. Quick ARDMS Exam Overview
Purpose: Certifies sonographers for competence in diagnostic ultrasound.
Exam Options:
o SPI (Sonography Principles & Instrumentation) – required core
exam.
o Specialty Exams: Abdomen, OB/GYN, Vascular, Cardiac, Breast, MSK,
Pediatric, etc.
Format: Computer-based, multiple-choice.
Content Areas (SPI):
1. Physical principles of ultrasound (waves, Doppler, attenuation).
2. Equipment operation & instrumentation.
3. Image optimization & artifacts.
4. Quality assurance, patient safety.
2. Sample ARDMS-Style Practice Questions (SPI Focus)
Physics & Principles
1. Which parameter is determined only by the sound source, not the
medium?
A. Wavelength
B. Propagation speed
C. Frequency
, D. Attenuation
Answer: C. Frequency
Rationale: The ultrasound transducer sets the frequency, while wavelength
and speed depend on the medium.
2. What happens to propagation speed when sound travels from soft tissue
into bone?
A. It decreases
B. It increases
C. It stays the same
D. It becomes zero
Answer: B. It increases
Rationale: Sound travels faster in denser materials; bone has a higher
propagation speed than soft tissue.
3. Which Doppler shift is produced when blood flow moves toward the
transducer?
A. No shift
B. Negative shift
C. Positive shift
D. Reversed frequency
Answer: C. Positive shift
Rationale: Flow toward the transducer produces a positive Doppler
frequency shift.
4. What is the main cause of acoustic shadowing in ultrasound imaging?
A. Refraction
B. Attenuation due to strong reflectors or absorbers
, C. Reverberation
D. Speed error
Answer: B. Attenuation due to strong reflectors or absorbers
Rationale: Shadowing occurs when structures like bone or stones strongly
attenuate the sound beam.
5. In diagnostic ultrasound, the most common transducer material is:
A. Lead zirconate titanate (PZT)
B. Quartz crystal
C. Lithium niobate
D. Glass ceramic
Answer: A. Lead zirconate titanate (PZT)
Rationale: PZT is the standard piezoelectric material used in modern
ultrasound transducers.
6. What happens to wavelength when frequency increases?
A. Wavelength increases
B. Wavelength decreases
C. Wavelength stays the same
D. Wavelength becomes infinite
Answer: B. Wavelength decreases
Rationale: Wavelength and frequency are inversely related when
propagation speed is constant.
7. What is the most common cause of aliasing in Doppler ultrasound?
A. Low frequency transducer
, B. PRF (pulse repetition frequency) too low
C. Excessive attenuation
D. High propagation speed
Answer: B. PRF (pulse repetition frequency) too low
Rationale: Aliasing occurs when Doppler shift frequency exceeds half the
PRF (Nyquist limit).
8. Which ultrasound mode displays motion of structures over time?
A. B-mode
B. M-mode
C. Doppler mode
D. 3D mode
Answer: B. M-mode
Rationale: M-mode records motion of structures along a single scan line
over time.
9. The beam width is primarily determined by:
A. Frequency
B. Focal depth
C. Transducer aperture and focusing
D. Pulse duration
Answer: C. Transducer aperture and focusing
Rationale: Beam width depends on aperture size and focusing; narrower
beams improve lateral resolution.
10. Which artifact appears as multiple equally spaced echoes caused by sound
bouncing between two strong reflectors?
CORRECT ANSWERS (VERIFIED ANSWERS) PLUS RATIONALES
2026|2027 Q&A | INSTANT DOWNLOAD PDF
1. Quick ARDMS Exam Overview
Purpose: Certifies sonographers for competence in diagnostic ultrasound.
Exam Options:
o SPI (Sonography Principles & Instrumentation) – required core
exam.
o Specialty Exams: Abdomen, OB/GYN, Vascular, Cardiac, Breast, MSK,
Pediatric, etc.
Format: Computer-based, multiple-choice.
Content Areas (SPI):
1. Physical principles of ultrasound (waves, Doppler, attenuation).
2. Equipment operation & instrumentation.
3. Image optimization & artifacts.
4. Quality assurance, patient safety.
2. Sample ARDMS-Style Practice Questions (SPI Focus)
Physics & Principles
1. Which parameter is determined only by the sound source, not the
medium?
A. Wavelength
B. Propagation speed
C. Frequency
, D. Attenuation
Answer: C. Frequency
Rationale: The ultrasound transducer sets the frequency, while wavelength
and speed depend on the medium.
2. What happens to propagation speed when sound travels from soft tissue
into bone?
A. It decreases
B. It increases
C. It stays the same
D. It becomes zero
Answer: B. It increases
Rationale: Sound travels faster in denser materials; bone has a higher
propagation speed than soft tissue.
3. Which Doppler shift is produced when blood flow moves toward the
transducer?
A. No shift
B. Negative shift
C. Positive shift
D. Reversed frequency
Answer: C. Positive shift
Rationale: Flow toward the transducer produces a positive Doppler
frequency shift.
4. What is the main cause of acoustic shadowing in ultrasound imaging?
A. Refraction
B. Attenuation due to strong reflectors or absorbers
, C. Reverberation
D. Speed error
Answer: B. Attenuation due to strong reflectors or absorbers
Rationale: Shadowing occurs when structures like bone or stones strongly
attenuate the sound beam.
5. In diagnostic ultrasound, the most common transducer material is:
A. Lead zirconate titanate (PZT)
B. Quartz crystal
C. Lithium niobate
D. Glass ceramic
Answer: A. Lead zirconate titanate (PZT)
Rationale: PZT is the standard piezoelectric material used in modern
ultrasound transducers.
6. What happens to wavelength when frequency increases?
A. Wavelength increases
B. Wavelength decreases
C. Wavelength stays the same
D. Wavelength becomes infinite
Answer: B. Wavelength decreases
Rationale: Wavelength and frequency are inversely related when
propagation speed is constant.
7. What is the most common cause of aliasing in Doppler ultrasound?
A. Low frequency transducer
, B. PRF (pulse repetition frequency) too low
C. Excessive attenuation
D. High propagation speed
Answer: B. PRF (pulse repetition frequency) too low
Rationale: Aliasing occurs when Doppler shift frequency exceeds half the
PRF (Nyquist limit).
8. Which ultrasound mode displays motion of structures over time?
A. B-mode
B. M-mode
C. Doppler mode
D. 3D mode
Answer: B. M-mode
Rationale: M-mode records motion of structures along a single scan line
over time.
9. The beam width is primarily determined by:
A. Frequency
B. Focal depth
C. Transducer aperture and focusing
D. Pulse duration
Answer: C. Transducer aperture and focusing
Rationale: Beam width depends on aperture size and focusing; narrower
beams improve lateral resolution.
10. Which artifact appears as multiple equally spaced echoes caused by sound
bouncing between two strong reflectors?
