NSG 120 : PATHOPHYSIOLOGY FINAL EXAM STUDY GUIDE (VERIFIED &
ACCURATE)
• Unit 1: Pathophysiology & Mechanisms of Disease
• Module 1: Module 1: Introduction to Pathophysiology
o NSG120.01.01.01 Explain the principles of pathology and homeostasis
and differentiate between key disease characteristics, etiologies, and
prognoses.
All definitions for this section
▪ Pathophysiology involves the study of functional or physiologic
changes in the body that result from disease processes
▪ Pathology, the laboratory study of cell and tissue changes
associated with disease.
▪ Homeostasis is the maintenance of a relatively stable internal
environment regardless of external changes. Disease develops
when significant changes occur in the body, leading to a state in
which homeostasis cannot be maintained without intervention
▪ Disease Characteristics
• Pathogenesis refers to the development of the disease or
the sequence of events involved in the tissue changes
related to the specific disease process.
• The onset: may be sudden and obvious or acute
• An acute disease indicates a short-term illness that develops
quickly with marked signs such as high fever or severe pain
(often less than 6 months)
• A chronic disease is often a milder condition developing
gradually, such as rheumatoid arthritis, but it persists for a
long time and usually causes more permanent tissue
damage. (often more than 6 months)
• A subclinical state exists in some conditions in which
pathologic changes occur but the patient exhibits no obvious
manifestations, perhaps because of the great reserve
capacity of some organs.
• An initial latent or “silent” stage, in which no clinical signs are
evident, characterizes some diseases. In infectious diseases
this stage may be referred to as the incubation period, which
is the time between exposure to the microorganism and the
onset of signs or symptoms
• The prodromal period comprises the time in the early
development of a disease when one is aware of a change in
the body, but the signs are nonspecific; Laboratory tests are
negative during the prodromal period
1
,• The manifestations of a disease are the clinical evidence or
effects, the signs and symptoms, of disease.
o Ex. redness and swelling, may be local, or found at
the site of the problem.
o systemic, meaning they are general indicators of
illness, such as fever.
• Signs are objective indicators of disease that are obvious to
someone other than the affected individual.
• Symptoms are subjective feelings, such as pain or nausea.
• Lesion is the term used to describe a specific local change in
the tissue.
• A syndrome is a collection of signs and symptoms, often
affecting more than one organ, that usually occur together in
response to a certain condition.
• Diagnostic tests are laboratory tests that assist in the
diagnosis of a specific disease.
o The appropriate tests are ordered on the basis of the
patient's manifestations and medical history, the
clinical examination, and the patient's answers to
specific questions
o It’s often helpful for a patient to have any future or
repeated tests done by the same laboratory to provide
a more accurate comparison of results.
• Remissions and exacerbations may mark the course or
progress of a disease.
o remission: when manifestations of the disease
subside, either permanently or temporarily.
o exacerbation: worsening in the severity of the disease
or in its signs/symptoms.
o Ex: rheumatoid arthritis and asthma
• A precipitating factor is a condition that triggers an acute
episode,
2
, o Ex. angina attack can be precipitated by shoveling
snow on a very cold day.
• Complications are new secondary or additional problems
that arise after the original disease begins.
o Ex. CHF after an MI
• Therapy or therapeutic interventions are treatment measures
used to promote recovery or slow the progress of a disease.
• Sequelae are the potential unwanted outcomes of the
primary condition
o Ex. paralysis following recovery from a stroke.
• Convalescence or rehabilitation is the period of recovery and
return to the normal healthy state
▪ Etiology concerns the causative factors in a particular disease.
• Idiopathic-unknown
• Iatrogenic-caused by treatment
• Predisposing factors encompass the tendencies that
promote development of a disease in an individual
• A prophylaxis is a measure designed to preserve health (as
of an individual or society) and prevent the spread of disease
• Prevention of disease is closely linked to etiology and
predisposing factors for a specific disease.
o Ex. Age, vaccinations, dietary or lifestyle
modifications, physical trauma, smoking, infection,
inflammation
▪ Prognosis: probability or likelihood for recovery or other outcomes
• Morbidity indicates the disease rates within a group
o this term is sometimes used to indicate the functional
impairment that certain conditions such as stroke
cause within a population.
• Mortality figures indicate the relative number of deaths
resulting from a particular disease.
• Epidemiology is the science of tracking the pattern or
occurrence of disease.
• The occurrence of a disease is tracked by recording two
factors, the incidence and the prevalence.
o The incidence of a disease indicates the number of
new cases in a given population noted within a stated
time period
o Prevalence refers to the number of new and old or
existing cases within a specific population and time
period. Note that prevalence is always a larger figure
than incidence.
3
ACCURATE)
• Unit 1: Pathophysiology & Mechanisms of Disease
• Module 1: Module 1: Introduction to Pathophysiology
o NSG120.01.01.01 Explain the principles of pathology and homeostasis
and differentiate between key disease characteristics, etiologies, and
prognoses.
All definitions for this section
▪ Pathophysiology involves the study of functional or physiologic
changes in the body that result from disease processes
▪ Pathology, the laboratory study of cell and tissue changes
associated with disease.
▪ Homeostasis is the maintenance of a relatively stable internal
environment regardless of external changes. Disease develops
when significant changes occur in the body, leading to a state in
which homeostasis cannot be maintained without intervention
▪ Disease Characteristics
• Pathogenesis refers to the development of the disease or
the sequence of events involved in the tissue changes
related to the specific disease process.
• The onset: may be sudden and obvious or acute
• An acute disease indicates a short-term illness that develops
quickly with marked signs such as high fever or severe pain
(often less than 6 months)
• A chronic disease is often a milder condition developing
gradually, such as rheumatoid arthritis, but it persists for a
long time and usually causes more permanent tissue
damage. (often more than 6 months)
• A subclinical state exists in some conditions in which
pathologic changes occur but the patient exhibits no obvious
manifestations, perhaps because of the great reserve
capacity of some organs.
• An initial latent or “silent” stage, in which no clinical signs are
evident, characterizes some diseases. In infectious diseases
this stage may be referred to as the incubation period, which
is the time between exposure to the microorganism and the
onset of signs or symptoms
• The prodromal period comprises the time in the early
development of a disease when one is aware of a change in
the body, but the signs are nonspecific; Laboratory tests are
negative during the prodromal period
1
,• The manifestations of a disease are the clinical evidence or
effects, the signs and symptoms, of disease.
o Ex. redness and swelling, may be local, or found at
the site of the problem.
o systemic, meaning they are general indicators of
illness, such as fever.
• Signs are objective indicators of disease that are obvious to
someone other than the affected individual.
• Symptoms are subjective feelings, such as pain or nausea.
• Lesion is the term used to describe a specific local change in
the tissue.
• A syndrome is a collection of signs and symptoms, often
affecting more than one organ, that usually occur together in
response to a certain condition.
• Diagnostic tests are laboratory tests that assist in the
diagnosis of a specific disease.
o The appropriate tests are ordered on the basis of the
patient's manifestations and medical history, the
clinical examination, and the patient's answers to
specific questions
o It’s often helpful for a patient to have any future or
repeated tests done by the same laboratory to provide
a more accurate comparison of results.
• Remissions and exacerbations may mark the course or
progress of a disease.
o remission: when manifestations of the disease
subside, either permanently or temporarily.
o exacerbation: worsening in the severity of the disease
or in its signs/symptoms.
o Ex: rheumatoid arthritis and asthma
• A precipitating factor is a condition that triggers an acute
episode,
2
, o Ex. angina attack can be precipitated by shoveling
snow on a very cold day.
• Complications are new secondary or additional problems
that arise after the original disease begins.
o Ex. CHF after an MI
• Therapy or therapeutic interventions are treatment measures
used to promote recovery or slow the progress of a disease.
• Sequelae are the potential unwanted outcomes of the
primary condition
o Ex. paralysis following recovery from a stroke.
• Convalescence or rehabilitation is the period of recovery and
return to the normal healthy state
▪ Etiology concerns the causative factors in a particular disease.
• Idiopathic-unknown
• Iatrogenic-caused by treatment
• Predisposing factors encompass the tendencies that
promote development of a disease in an individual
• A prophylaxis is a measure designed to preserve health (as
of an individual or society) and prevent the spread of disease
• Prevention of disease is closely linked to etiology and
predisposing factors for a specific disease.
o Ex. Age, vaccinations, dietary or lifestyle
modifications, physical trauma, smoking, infection,
inflammation
▪ Prognosis: probability or likelihood for recovery or other outcomes
• Morbidity indicates the disease rates within a group
o this term is sometimes used to indicate the functional
impairment that certain conditions such as stroke
cause within a population.
• Mortality figures indicate the relative number of deaths
resulting from a particular disease.
• Epidemiology is the science of tracking the pattern or
occurrence of disease.
• The occurrence of a disease is tracked by recording two
factors, the incidence and the prevalence.
o The incidence of a disease indicates the number of
new cases in a given population noted within a stated
time period
o Prevalence refers to the number of new and old or
existing cases within a specific population and time
period. Note that prevalence is always a larger figure
than incidence.
3
