NURS 304 - Pathophysiology UPDATED ACTUAL Questions and
CORRECT Answers
Question: What does the WHO define health as?
Correct Answer: a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of
disease or infirmity
Question: What is the Healthy People 2020 definition of health?
Correct Answer: The vision of Healthy People 2020 is to have a society in which all people live long,
healthy lives. The overarching goals of Healthy People 2020 are to: attain high-quality, longer lives free of
preventable disease, disability, injury, and premature death; achieve health equity, eliminate disparities, and
improve the health of all groups; create social and physical environments that promote good health for all;
and promote quality of life, healthy development, and healthy behaviors across all life stages.
Question: How is health more than just biology?
Correct Answer: Health can be shaped or influenced by biological, social, economic, physical, and
environmental factors.. along with the interrelationships of these factors. The ability to pursue one's goals to
acquire skills and education were increasingly recognized as important components of health. Having a
healthy population began to be seen as an asset to society that increased resources and capacity of society.
Question: How is health impacted?
Correct Answer: Health is impacted by the conditions we are born, grow, live, work and age. One's health
is largely determined by the social, economic, cultural and physical environments that surround them.
Question: How can income and social status impact health?
Correct Answer: Higher income and social status are linked to better health. The greater the gap between
the richest and poorest, the greater the differences in health.
Question: How does education affect health?
Correct Answer: Lower education levels are linked with poor health, more stress and lower self
confidence.
Question: How does the physical environment affect health?
Correct Answer: Safe water, clean air, healthy soil, healthy workplaces, safe houses and communities, safe
roads and transportation options.
Question: How does employment and working conditions affect health?
Correct Answer: People who are employed are healthier, especially those who have control over their
working conditions.
Question: How doe social support networks affect health?
Correct Answer: Support from friends, families and communities is linked to better health.
Question: How does culture affect health?
Correct Answer: Customs and tradition and the beliefs of the family/community all affect health.
Question: How does personal behavior and coping skills affect health?
,Correct Answer: Balanced/healthy eating habits, keeping active, not smoking or drinking, dealing with
stress
Question: What are the social determinants of health?
Correct Answer: The complex, integrated, and overlapping social structures and economic systems that
are responsible for most health inequities. -Access and quality of education and healthcare. -Economic
stability. -Social and community context, - Neighborhood and built environments. Examples include safe
housing, transportation and neighborhoods. Racism, discrimination and violence. Education, job
opportunities and income. Access to nutritious foods and physical health opportunities. Polluted air, water
and land. Language and literacy skills.
Question: What is Healthy People 2020?
Correct Answer: A NATIONAL agenda that communicates a vision for improving health and achieving
health equity. AND A set of specific measurable objectives with targets to be achieved over the decade.
Question: What are health disparities?
Correct Answer: A health difference that is closely linked with social, economic or environmental
disadvantages.
Question: What is health literacy?
Correct Answer: The degree to which individuals have the capacity to obtain, process, and understand
basic health information and services needed to make appropriate health decisions.
Question: What is health literacy dependent on?
Correct Answer: 1. Communication skills of lay people and health professionals. 2. Knowledge of lay
people and professionals of health topics. 3. Culture (values, norms, symbols, ways of living, traditions,
history , institutions of people). 4. Health care and public health systems. 5. Demands of the
situation/context.
Question: Health literacy affects people's ability to
Correct Answer: : 1. Navigate the healthcare system, including filling out complex forms and locating
providers and services. 2. Share personal information, such as health history, with providers. 3. Engage in
self-care and chronic-disease management. 4. Understand mathematical concepts such as probability and
risk.
Question: What was the third leading cause of death in the US in 2016
Correct Answer: Medical errors
Question: What was the 3rd leading cause of death in the US in 2020?
Correct Answer: COVID 19
Question: If current trends continue, how many adults in the US could have diabetes by 2050?
Correct Answer: As many as 1 in 3 U.S. adults could have diabetes by 2050 if current trends continue,
according to a new analysis from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. - One in 10 U.S. adults
had diabetes[in 2010.] The prevalence is expected to rise sharply over the next 40 years due to an aging
population more likely to develop type 2 diabetes, increases in minority groups that are at high risk for type
2 diabetes, and people with diabetes living longer, according to CDC projections published in the journal
Population Health Metrics. Because the study factored in aging, minority populations and lifespan, the
projections are higher than previous estimates. - The report predicts that the number of new diabetes cases
,each year will increase from 8 per 1,000 people in 2008, to 15 per 1,000 in 2050.
Question: Some definitions to review
Correct Answer: : - Anatomy is the study of body structure - Physiology is the study of body function -
Disease A disease is a particular abnormal condition that negatively affects the structure or function of all or
part of an organism, and that is not due to any immediate external injury. Diseases are often known to be
medical conditions that are associated with specific symptoms and signs. - Pathology is "the science of the
causes and effects of diseases, especially the branch of medicine that deals with the laboratory examination
of samples of body tissue for diagnostic or forensic purposes"
Question: What is pathophysiology?
Correct Answer: Pathophysiology is the study of the disordered physiological processes associated with
disease or injury
Question: What is the pathophysiological framework?
Correct Answer: "Pathophysiology Framework" - interrelated topics relevant to the study of disease -
Etiology - Pathogenesis - Morphologic changes - Clinical manifestations - Identifying the disease by name:
diagnosis - Treatment implications - Stages and clinical course
Question: How are diseases usually studied?
Correct Answer: Diseases are often studied based on common, "typical" or "classic" presentation of
disease in the physiologic functioning of human beings - Individual people don't always fit the "classic"
(textbook) description of disease
Question: What are other considerations when understanding a disease?
Correct Answer: What increases the likelihood of developing this disease? What decreases the chances of
getting the disease? - What is the pattern of disease over time (in an affected individual)? - How would the
disease affect an individual if no treatment/medical intervention was provided? - How does this disease
"show up" in a population? - Who gets it? - Can the disease be transmitted from one person to another? If
so, how?
Question: Define etiology
Correct Answer: : The study of the causes of a disease or phenomena. The molecular, cellular and
biological mechanisms responsible for disease onset.
Question: Define Pathogenesis
Correct Answer: : The development of disease. The cellular events, reactions and other pathologic
mechanisms occurring in the development or progression of disease.
Question: Define morphologic changes
Correct Answer: : Changes that occur in response to etiologic agents. This refers to changes in cells,
tissues or organs that a pathologist might identify in the lab under a microscope.
Question: Define clinical manifestations
Correct Answer: : Evidence (signs and symptoms) of disease. Signs of illness can be independently
verified by a clinician; whereas symptoms refer to a subjective complaint that is reported by the person with
the health problem. It is also possible for a person to have a disease but have no symptoms, i.e. be
asymptomatic.
, Question: Define diagnosis
Correct Answer: : Identification of disease by its symptoms, signs and other manifestations.
Question: Define treatment
Correct Answer: : Medical interventions given to restore health to patients/victims of a disease.
Question: Define clinical course
Correct Answer: : Refers to a description of the stages of that illness/disease over time, including potential
complications of the disease, and typical outcomes. - How the disease behaves over time.
Question: Etiology
Correct Answer: Identifies causal factors that, acting in concert, provoke a particular disease or injury
Etiologies of disease may include, but are not limited to: - Biologic agents (e.g., bacteria, viruses) - Physical
forces (e.g., trauma, burns, radiation, blast) - Chemical agents (e.g., poisons, alcohol) - Nutritional excesses
or deficits - Degenerative changes - Environmental hazards- air/water/soil - Idiopathic - disease with
unknown cause - Iatrogenic - Condition is the unintended, unwanted effect of medical care/treatment -
Nosocomial - Condition is the unintended, unwanted effect of the hospital environment or care setting
Question: Define genetic disease
Correct Answer: : Genes are responsible for a structural or functional defect.
Question: Define congenital disease
Correct Answer: : Genetic information is intact, but the intrauterine environment interfered with normal
development; disease present at birth.
Question: Define acquired disease
Correct Answer: : Disease caused by factors encountered after birth.
Question: Pathogeneis
Correct Answer: Description of how etiologic factors are thought to alter physiologic function and lead to
the development of clinical manifestations that are observed in a particular disorder/disease - Development
or evolution of disease, from initial stimulus to ultimate expression of manifestations of the disease
Question: Morphologic Changes
Correct Answer: Morphologic changes refer to the identifiable changes in cells, tissues or organs as a
result of the disease process... - A disease may cause anatomic changes to cellular structure, size, or shape -
The diseased tissue or organ may appear grossly different from normal healthy tissue/organ - Perhaps other
specialized examination technique may be necessary to identify changes caused by disease Morphologic
changes are used to diagnose disease, stage a disease, or evaluate effects of treatment.
Question: Clinical manifestation of disease
Correct Answer: The "evidence" of disease that you might uncover during a patient history and physical
exam, i.e. the signs and symptoms that typically accompany a particular pathophysiologic process - Signs of
illness - can be independently and objectively verified by a clinician - Symptoms of illness - refer to
subjective complaint that is reported by the person with the health problem; cannot be objectively verified -
Asymptomatic - it is also possible for a person to have a disease but have no symptoms of the disease -
Syndrome - a group of symptoms which consistently occur together, or a condition characterized by a set of
associated symptoms - Changes in labs, x-rays, etc Manifestations of disease may vary depending on the
CORRECT Answers
Question: What does the WHO define health as?
Correct Answer: a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of
disease or infirmity
Question: What is the Healthy People 2020 definition of health?
Correct Answer: The vision of Healthy People 2020 is to have a society in which all people live long,
healthy lives. The overarching goals of Healthy People 2020 are to: attain high-quality, longer lives free of
preventable disease, disability, injury, and premature death; achieve health equity, eliminate disparities, and
improve the health of all groups; create social and physical environments that promote good health for all;
and promote quality of life, healthy development, and healthy behaviors across all life stages.
Question: How is health more than just biology?
Correct Answer: Health can be shaped or influenced by biological, social, economic, physical, and
environmental factors.. along with the interrelationships of these factors. The ability to pursue one's goals to
acquire skills and education were increasingly recognized as important components of health. Having a
healthy population began to be seen as an asset to society that increased resources and capacity of society.
Question: How is health impacted?
Correct Answer: Health is impacted by the conditions we are born, grow, live, work and age. One's health
is largely determined by the social, economic, cultural and physical environments that surround them.
Question: How can income and social status impact health?
Correct Answer: Higher income and social status are linked to better health. The greater the gap between
the richest and poorest, the greater the differences in health.
Question: How does education affect health?
Correct Answer: Lower education levels are linked with poor health, more stress and lower self
confidence.
Question: How does the physical environment affect health?
Correct Answer: Safe water, clean air, healthy soil, healthy workplaces, safe houses and communities, safe
roads and transportation options.
Question: How does employment and working conditions affect health?
Correct Answer: People who are employed are healthier, especially those who have control over their
working conditions.
Question: How doe social support networks affect health?
Correct Answer: Support from friends, families and communities is linked to better health.
Question: How does culture affect health?
Correct Answer: Customs and tradition and the beliefs of the family/community all affect health.
Question: How does personal behavior and coping skills affect health?
,Correct Answer: Balanced/healthy eating habits, keeping active, not smoking or drinking, dealing with
stress
Question: What are the social determinants of health?
Correct Answer: The complex, integrated, and overlapping social structures and economic systems that
are responsible for most health inequities. -Access and quality of education and healthcare. -Economic
stability. -Social and community context, - Neighborhood and built environments. Examples include safe
housing, transportation and neighborhoods. Racism, discrimination and violence. Education, job
opportunities and income. Access to nutritious foods and physical health opportunities. Polluted air, water
and land. Language and literacy skills.
Question: What is Healthy People 2020?
Correct Answer: A NATIONAL agenda that communicates a vision for improving health and achieving
health equity. AND A set of specific measurable objectives with targets to be achieved over the decade.
Question: What are health disparities?
Correct Answer: A health difference that is closely linked with social, economic or environmental
disadvantages.
Question: What is health literacy?
Correct Answer: The degree to which individuals have the capacity to obtain, process, and understand
basic health information and services needed to make appropriate health decisions.
Question: What is health literacy dependent on?
Correct Answer: 1. Communication skills of lay people and health professionals. 2. Knowledge of lay
people and professionals of health topics. 3. Culture (values, norms, symbols, ways of living, traditions,
history , institutions of people). 4. Health care and public health systems. 5. Demands of the
situation/context.
Question: Health literacy affects people's ability to
Correct Answer: : 1. Navigate the healthcare system, including filling out complex forms and locating
providers and services. 2. Share personal information, such as health history, with providers. 3. Engage in
self-care and chronic-disease management. 4. Understand mathematical concepts such as probability and
risk.
Question: What was the third leading cause of death in the US in 2016
Correct Answer: Medical errors
Question: What was the 3rd leading cause of death in the US in 2020?
Correct Answer: COVID 19
Question: If current trends continue, how many adults in the US could have diabetes by 2050?
Correct Answer: As many as 1 in 3 U.S. adults could have diabetes by 2050 if current trends continue,
according to a new analysis from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. - One in 10 U.S. adults
had diabetes[in 2010.] The prevalence is expected to rise sharply over the next 40 years due to an aging
population more likely to develop type 2 diabetes, increases in minority groups that are at high risk for type
2 diabetes, and people with diabetes living longer, according to CDC projections published in the journal
Population Health Metrics. Because the study factored in aging, minority populations and lifespan, the
projections are higher than previous estimates. - The report predicts that the number of new diabetes cases
,each year will increase from 8 per 1,000 people in 2008, to 15 per 1,000 in 2050.
Question: Some definitions to review
Correct Answer: : - Anatomy is the study of body structure - Physiology is the study of body function -
Disease A disease is a particular abnormal condition that negatively affects the structure or function of all or
part of an organism, and that is not due to any immediate external injury. Diseases are often known to be
medical conditions that are associated with specific symptoms and signs. - Pathology is "the science of the
causes and effects of diseases, especially the branch of medicine that deals with the laboratory examination
of samples of body tissue for diagnostic or forensic purposes"
Question: What is pathophysiology?
Correct Answer: Pathophysiology is the study of the disordered physiological processes associated with
disease or injury
Question: What is the pathophysiological framework?
Correct Answer: "Pathophysiology Framework" - interrelated topics relevant to the study of disease -
Etiology - Pathogenesis - Morphologic changes - Clinical manifestations - Identifying the disease by name:
diagnosis - Treatment implications - Stages and clinical course
Question: How are diseases usually studied?
Correct Answer: Diseases are often studied based on common, "typical" or "classic" presentation of
disease in the physiologic functioning of human beings - Individual people don't always fit the "classic"
(textbook) description of disease
Question: What are other considerations when understanding a disease?
Correct Answer: What increases the likelihood of developing this disease? What decreases the chances of
getting the disease? - What is the pattern of disease over time (in an affected individual)? - How would the
disease affect an individual if no treatment/medical intervention was provided? - How does this disease
"show up" in a population? - Who gets it? - Can the disease be transmitted from one person to another? If
so, how?
Question: Define etiology
Correct Answer: : The study of the causes of a disease or phenomena. The molecular, cellular and
biological mechanisms responsible for disease onset.
Question: Define Pathogenesis
Correct Answer: : The development of disease. The cellular events, reactions and other pathologic
mechanisms occurring in the development or progression of disease.
Question: Define morphologic changes
Correct Answer: : Changes that occur in response to etiologic agents. This refers to changes in cells,
tissues or organs that a pathologist might identify in the lab under a microscope.
Question: Define clinical manifestations
Correct Answer: : Evidence (signs and symptoms) of disease. Signs of illness can be independently
verified by a clinician; whereas symptoms refer to a subjective complaint that is reported by the person with
the health problem. It is also possible for a person to have a disease but have no symptoms, i.e. be
asymptomatic.
, Question: Define diagnosis
Correct Answer: : Identification of disease by its symptoms, signs and other manifestations.
Question: Define treatment
Correct Answer: : Medical interventions given to restore health to patients/victims of a disease.
Question: Define clinical course
Correct Answer: : Refers to a description of the stages of that illness/disease over time, including potential
complications of the disease, and typical outcomes. - How the disease behaves over time.
Question: Etiology
Correct Answer: Identifies causal factors that, acting in concert, provoke a particular disease or injury
Etiologies of disease may include, but are not limited to: - Biologic agents (e.g., bacteria, viruses) - Physical
forces (e.g., trauma, burns, radiation, blast) - Chemical agents (e.g., poisons, alcohol) - Nutritional excesses
or deficits - Degenerative changes - Environmental hazards- air/water/soil - Idiopathic - disease with
unknown cause - Iatrogenic - Condition is the unintended, unwanted effect of medical care/treatment -
Nosocomial - Condition is the unintended, unwanted effect of the hospital environment or care setting
Question: Define genetic disease
Correct Answer: : Genes are responsible for a structural or functional defect.
Question: Define congenital disease
Correct Answer: : Genetic information is intact, but the intrauterine environment interfered with normal
development; disease present at birth.
Question: Define acquired disease
Correct Answer: : Disease caused by factors encountered after birth.
Question: Pathogeneis
Correct Answer: Description of how etiologic factors are thought to alter physiologic function and lead to
the development of clinical manifestations that are observed in a particular disorder/disease - Development
or evolution of disease, from initial stimulus to ultimate expression of manifestations of the disease
Question: Morphologic Changes
Correct Answer: Morphologic changes refer to the identifiable changes in cells, tissues or organs as a
result of the disease process... - A disease may cause anatomic changes to cellular structure, size, or shape -
The diseased tissue or organ may appear grossly different from normal healthy tissue/organ - Perhaps other
specialized examination technique may be necessary to identify changes caused by disease Morphologic
changes are used to diagnose disease, stage a disease, or evaluate effects of treatment.
Question: Clinical manifestation of disease
Correct Answer: The "evidence" of disease that you might uncover during a patient history and physical
exam, i.e. the signs and symptoms that typically accompany a particular pathophysiologic process - Signs of
illness - can be independently and objectively verified by a clinician - Symptoms of illness - refer to
subjective complaint that is reported by the person with the health problem; cannot be objectively verified -
Asymptomatic - it is also possible for a person to have a disease but have no symptoms of the disease -
Syndrome - a group of symptoms which consistently occur together, or a condition characterized by a set of
associated symptoms - Changes in labs, x-rays, etc Manifestations of disease may vary depending on the
