RCIS EXAM STUDY GUIDE QUESTIONS
AND ANSWERS GRADED A+ 2025/2026
What is the pressure as blood enters the right atrium? - ANS 5mmHg
What organ system in the body acts on the blood in the vessels to make a pressure of 5mmHg? -
ANS Deep skeletal muscle pump system
What pressure is the blood under as it goes from the RA through the tricuspid valve? -
ANS 5mmHg
The bigger the diameter of the valve the __________ pressure is needed to move blood across
it. - ANS Less
The smaller the diameter of the valve the _________ pressure is needed to move blood across
it. - ANS more
What is the largest valve in the heart? - ANS tricuspid valve
What is the normal right ventricular systolic pressure? - ANS 25mmHg
How much smaller is the pulmonic valve than the tricuspid valve? - ANS 5x smaller. It takes
5mmHg to get across the tricuspid valve and 25mmHg to get across the pulmonic valve.
1 @COPYRIGHT 2025/2026 ALLRIGHTS RESERVED.
,Which valve has a bigger diameter, the tricuspid or pulmonic valve? - ANS Tricuspid
Which valve requires more pressure to move across it, the tricuspid or the pulmonic? -
ANS pulmonic
Valve A requires 5mmHg to move blood and valve B requires 30mmHg. Which valve has a
smaller diameter? - ANS Valve B
What is the right ventricular diastolic pressure? - ANS 5mmHg
What is the RV EDP? - ANS 5mmHg
Why is the RV EDP not zero? - ANS Because some blood is not ejected out. The heart is not a
perfectly efficient pump.
What is a normal RV ejection fraction? - ANS 55-60%
What is EDP? - ANS End Diastolic Pressure. An efficient heart has an ejection fraction of 55-
60%, this leftover blood in the ventricle is under a resting (diastolic) pressure.
What is a normal diastolic pressure in the pulmonary artery? - ANS 7-12mmHg
What is the normal left atrial pressure? - ANS 7-12mmHg
What is the normal O2 concentration of a RBC leaving the lungs? - ANS 98%
What is the normal O2 concentration of a RBC when it returns to the RA? - ANS 70%
2 @COPYRIGHT 2025/2026 ALLRIGHTS RESERVED.
,How much O2 is a RBC able to give up to the organs? - ANS 30% of its O2
True/False: If someone has a higher EDP there is less damage to the heart. - ANS False, the
higher the EDP the more damage. More blood is being left and not pumped out.
What is a normal wedge pressure? - ANS 7-12mmHg
If the RBCs go through the lungs faster than 7-12mmHg what happens? - ANS The RBCs have
less time to get the O2 needed to fill them up fully.
True or False: The higher the wedge pressure the faster the RBCs go through the lungs and the
less O2 they are able to acquire. - ANS True.
COPD is elevated wedge pressure. True or False - ANS True. 30-40mmHg is not unusual. RBCs
move so fast that they come out of the lungs with much less than 98% O2.
COPD O2 sats can be in the low to mid 80's. True or false - ANS True.
Why is the wedge pressure indicative of the LA pressure? - ANS Because there are no valves
in between, just the lung system. Since no valves the pressure in the LA should be the same.
When the leaflets open up on the mitral valve it is possible to see into the left ventricle.
When the mitral valve leaflets open up and the wedge catheter is able to see into the LV what is
the pressure that it sees? - ANS LV EDP
What is a normal LV EDP? - ANS 7-12mmHg
If the LV EDP goes up and the LA pressure goes up, what other pressure would you expect to
rise? - ANS The wedge pressure
3 @COPYRIGHT 2025/2026 ALLRIGHTS RESERVED.
, What would increase your right atrial pressure? - ANS tricuspid stenosis
Where would you see a high RA pressure demonstrated on a patient? - ANS Jugular vein
distention
If a person has an RV MI will the RV systolic pressure be affected? - ANS No matter how big
the MI the systolic pressure will not change. The RV EDP will increase as the RV is not as able to
push the blood out as effectively as before the MI.
Would an RV MI affect the diameter of the pulmonic valve or the diameter of the pulmonic
arteries? - ANS No
If a person has an RV MI would the RV EDP be affected? - ANS Yes. If the muscle fibers are
dead the heart's ability to squeeze is impacted so more blood is left behind.
What would cause the LV systolic pressure to increase? - ANS Aortic stenosis. (What would
prevent a RBC from moving forward from the RV?)
What would cause your LVEDP to increase but not increase your LV systolic pressure? -
ANS LV MI would increase the LV EDP because the heart is less effective as a pump. As the LV
is able to eject less blood, the end diastolic pressure gets higher.
The systolic pressure does not need to increase because that is the pressure to get the blood
past the aortic valve.
As the EF (ejection fraction) goes down the EDP (end diastolic pressure) _________
___________. - ANS Goes up
What is the RV systolic pressure of pulmonic stenosis? - ANS Any pressure higher than
25mmHg is pulmonic stenosis. The narrower the valve the ore pressure is needed to move
across it. The muscle fibers need to generate more pressure to get RBCs past the stenotic valve.
4 @COPYRIGHT 2025/2026 ALLRIGHTS RESERVED.
AND ANSWERS GRADED A+ 2025/2026
What is the pressure as blood enters the right atrium? - ANS 5mmHg
What organ system in the body acts on the blood in the vessels to make a pressure of 5mmHg? -
ANS Deep skeletal muscle pump system
What pressure is the blood under as it goes from the RA through the tricuspid valve? -
ANS 5mmHg
The bigger the diameter of the valve the __________ pressure is needed to move blood across
it. - ANS Less
The smaller the diameter of the valve the _________ pressure is needed to move blood across
it. - ANS more
What is the largest valve in the heart? - ANS tricuspid valve
What is the normal right ventricular systolic pressure? - ANS 25mmHg
How much smaller is the pulmonic valve than the tricuspid valve? - ANS 5x smaller. It takes
5mmHg to get across the tricuspid valve and 25mmHg to get across the pulmonic valve.
1 @COPYRIGHT 2025/2026 ALLRIGHTS RESERVED.
,Which valve has a bigger diameter, the tricuspid or pulmonic valve? - ANS Tricuspid
Which valve requires more pressure to move across it, the tricuspid or the pulmonic? -
ANS pulmonic
Valve A requires 5mmHg to move blood and valve B requires 30mmHg. Which valve has a
smaller diameter? - ANS Valve B
What is the right ventricular diastolic pressure? - ANS 5mmHg
What is the RV EDP? - ANS 5mmHg
Why is the RV EDP not zero? - ANS Because some blood is not ejected out. The heart is not a
perfectly efficient pump.
What is a normal RV ejection fraction? - ANS 55-60%
What is EDP? - ANS End Diastolic Pressure. An efficient heart has an ejection fraction of 55-
60%, this leftover blood in the ventricle is under a resting (diastolic) pressure.
What is a normal diastolic pressure in the pulmonary artery? - ANS 7-12mmHg
What is the normal left atrial pressure? - ANS 7-12mmHg
What is the normal O2 concentration of a RBC leaving the lungs? - ANS 98%
What is the normal O2 concentration of a RBC when it returns to the RA? - ANS 70%
2 @COPYRIGHT 2025/2026 ALLRIGHTS RESERVED.
,How much O2 is a RBC able to give up to the organs? - ANS 30% of its O2
True/False: If someone has a higher EDP there is less damage to the heart. - ANS False, the
higher the EDP the more damage. More blood is being left and not pumped out.
What is a normal wedge pressure? - ANS 7-12mmHg
If the RBCs go through the lungs faster than 7-12mmHg what happens? - ANS The RBCs have
less time to get the O2 needed to fill them up fully.
True or False: The higher the wedge pressure the faster the RBCs go through the lungs and the
less O2 they are able to acquire. - ANS True.
COPD is elevated wedge pressure. True or False - ANS True. 30-40mmHg is not unusual. RBCs
move so fast that they come out of the lungs with much less than 98% O2.
COPD O2 sats can be in the low to mid 80's. True or false - ANS True.
Why is the wedge pressure indicative of the LA pressure? - ANS Because there are no valves
in between, just the lung system. Since no valves the pressure in the LA should be the same.
When the leaflets open up on the mitral valve it is possible to see into the left ventricle.
When the mitral valve leaflets open up and the wedge catheter is able to see into the LV what is
the pressure that it sees? - ANS LV EDP
What is a normal LV EDP? - ANS 7-12mmHg
If the LV EDP goes up and the LA pressure goes up, what other pressure would you expect to
rise? - ANS The wedge pressure
3 @COPYRIGHT 2025/2026 ALLRIGHTS RESERVED.
, What would increase your right atrial pressure? - ANS tricuspid stenosis
Where would you see a high RA pressure demonstrated on a patient? - ANS Jugular vein
distention
If a person has an RV MI will the RV systolic pressure be affected? - ANS No matter how big
the MI the systolic pressure will not change. The RV EDP will increase as the RV is not as able to
push the blood out as effectively as before the MI.
Would an RV MI affect the diameter of the pulmonic valve or the diameter of the pulmonic
arteries? - ANS No
If a person has an RV MI would the RV EDP be affected? - ANS Yes. If the muscle fibers are
dead the heart's ability to squeeze is impacted so more blood is left behind.
What would cause the LV systolic pressure to increase? - ANS Aortic stenosis. (What would
prevent a RBC from moving forward from the RV?)
What would cause your LVEDP to increase but not increase your LV systolic pressure? -
ANS LV MI would increase the LV EDP because the heart is less effective as a pump. As the LV
is able to eject less blood, the end diastolic pressure gets higher.
The systolic pressure does not need to increase because that is the pressure to get the blood
past the aortic valve.
As the EF (ejection fraction) goes down the EDP (end diastolic pressure) _________
___________. - ANS Goes up
What is the RV systolic pressure of pulmonic stenosis? - ANS Any pressure higher than
25mmHg is pulmonic stenosis. The narrower the valve the ore pressure is needed to move
across it. The muscle fibers need to generate more pressure to get RBCs past the stenotic valve.
4 @COPYRIGHT 2025/2026 ALLRIGHTS RESERVED.
