ADVANCED PATHOPHYSIOLOGY
EXAM 1
EXAM PREPARATION & REVIEW
EPIDEMIOLOGY • HOMEOSTASIS
CELLULAR PATHOPHYSIOLOGY
QUESTIONS, ANSWERS & STUDY MATERIAL
STUDY ANSWER TOPIC 2026/27
MATERIAL REVIEW COVERAGE EDITION
,ADVANCED PATHOPHYSIOLOGY EXAM 1 (pdf) |
2026/2027 | EPIDEMIOLOGY, HOMEOSTASIS AND
CELLULAR PATHOPHYSIOLOGY Q&A | ADVANCED
NURSING
CHAPTER 1: CONCEPTS OF HEALTH AND DISEASE
Risk — Factor that when present increases the chance of disease. Not stressors, but
conditions or situations that increase the likelihood of encountering a stressor.
Prevalence — A measure of disease that allows us to determine a person's likelihood of
having a disease. Therefore, the number of prevalent cases is the total number of cases
of disease existing in a population. A prevalence rate is the total number of cases of a
disease existing in a population divided by the total population. Indicates how
widespread the disease is.
Incidence — A measure of disease that allows us to determine a person's probability of
being diagnosed with a disease during a given period of time. Therefore, incidence is
the number of newly diagnosed cases of a disease. An incidence rate is the number of
new cases of a disease divided by the number of persons at risk for the disease. Conveys
information about the risk of contracting the disease.
Ratio — The quantitative relation between two amounts showing the number of times
one value contains or is contained within the other.
Primary Prevention — Altering susceptibility or reducing exposure for susceptible
persons. Both illness and disease are absent. Example: vaccinations, healthy lifestyles.
Secondary Prevention — Early detection, screening, and management of disease.
Illness absent, disease present. Example: screenings and testings.
Tertiary Prevention — Rehabilitation, supportive care, reducing disability, and restoring
effective functioning. Both illness and disease present. Example: education.
Epidemiology — Study of the patterns of disease involving populations; examining the
occurrence, incidence, prevalence, transmission, and distribution of diseases in large
groups of populations/people.
Endemic — A disease that is native to a local region.
, Epidemic — When a disease is disseminated to many individuals at the same time
(spread to many people at the same time).
Pandemic — Epidemics that affect large geographic regions, perhaps spreading
worldwide (spread to large geographic areas).
CHAPTER 2: HOMEOSTASIS AND ADAPTIVE RESPONSES TO
STRESSORS
Homeostasis — A state of being in which all systems are in balance around a particular
ideal "set-point."
Exhaustion — Point where body can no longer return to homeostasis following a
prolonged exposure to noxious agents.
Allostatic Overload — "Cost" of body's organs and tissues for an excessive or
ineffectively regulated allostatic response; effect of "wear and tear" on the body.
Adaptation — Biopsychosocial process of change in response to new or altered
circumstances, internal or external in origin. Coping: behavioral adaptive response to a
stressor using culturally based coping mechanisms. Adaptation and coping: terms used
interchangeably.
Arousal — Includes alterations in responsiveness to homeostatic pressures, sensory
stimuli and emotional reactivity, and to changes in motor activity.
Function of Cortisol — Primary glucocorticoid. Affects protein metabolism. Promotes
appetite and food-seeking behaviors. Has anti-inflammatory effects. Chemical mediator
in the inflammation response of the body. Adrenal corticosteroid critical to maintenance
of homeostasis. May synergize or antagonize effects of catecholamines.
CHAPTER 3: CELL STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION
Endocrine Communication — Hormones traveling in the bloodstream. Long range
signaling.