NURS 5359 EXAM 4 | QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS |
2026 UPDATE | 100% CORRECT - UTT.
SECTION A: DEMENTIA AND NEURODEGENERATIVE DISORDERS
Question 1
__________ disease is the most common cause of dementia and arguably the
most devastating age-related disorder with profound consequences to patients,
family members, caregivers, and the economy.
A) Vascular
B) Frontotemporal
C) Alzheimer's
D) Lewy Body
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of dementia, accounting
for 60-80% of cases. It is characterized by progressive neurodegeneration with
profound cognitive, functional, and behavioral decline .
Question 2
Two of the major pathological hallmarks seen in the Alzheimer's disease brain at
autopsy are plaques composed of ________ and ________ composed of
hyperphosphorylated tau protein.
A) Neurofibrillary tangles; amyloid-beta
B) Amyloid-beta; neurofibrillary tangles
C) Alpha-synuclein; amyloid plaques
D) Tau proteins; alpha-synuclein
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: The two major pathological hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease are
,amyloid-beta plaques (extracellular deposits) and neurofibrillary tangles
composed of hyperphosphorylated tau protein (intracellular). The third major
hallmark is neuronal cell loss, often so profound it can be seen with the naked eye .
Question 3
The third major pathological hallmark seen in the Alzheimer's disease brain at
autopsy is __________ cell loss; it is often so profound that it can be seen with the
naked eye on postmortem examination.
A) Glial
B) Neuronal
C) Vascular
D) Synaptic
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Neuronal cell loss is the third major pathological hallmark of
Alzheimer's disease. This widespread neurodegeneration leads to brain atrophy
and is responsible for the clinical manifestations of cognitive decline .
Question 4
A patient presents with short-term memory loss, impaired executive function,
difficulty with activities of daily living, time and spatial disorientation, language
impairment, and personality changes. These symptoms are most consistent with:
A) Vascular dementia
B) Alzheimer's disease
C) Lewy body dementia
D) Frontotemporal degeneration
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Alzheimer's disease presents with progressive short-term memory loss,
executive dysfunction, difficulty with ADLs, disorientation, language impairment,
, and personality changes. It typically has an insidious onset and gradual
progression .
Question 5
Impaired abstraction, mental flexibility, processing speed, and working memory
with better-preserved verbal memory and slower cognitive decline, with dementia
occurring within several months of a stroke, are characteristic of:
A) Alzheimer's disease
B) Vascular dementia
C) Lewy body dementia
D) Frontotemporal degeneration
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Vascular dementia is characterized by stepwise decline that follows
cerebrovascular events (strokes). Verbal memory is often better preserved than in
Alzheimer's disease, while processing speed and executive functions are more
prominently affected .
Question 6
Visual hallucinations, spontaneous parkinsonism, cognitive fluctuations, and
visuospatial, attention, and executive function deficits that are worse than
memory impairment, with earlier presentation of psychosis and personality
changes, are characteristic of:
A) Alzheimer's disease
B) Vascular dementia
C) Lewy body dementia
D) Frontotemporal degeneration
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: Lewy body dementia is characterized by visual hallucinations,
spontaneous parkinsonism (motor symptoms), and cognitive fluctuations. Memory
2026 UPDATE | 100% CORRECT - UTT.
SECTION A: DEMENTIA AND NEURODEGENERATIVE DISORDERS
Question 1
__________ disease is the most common cause of dementia and arguably the
most devastating age-related disorder with profound consequences to patients,
family members, caregivers, and the economy.
A) Vascular
B) Frontotemporal
C) Alzheimer's
D) Lewy Body
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of dementia, accounting
for 60-80% of cases. It is characterized by progressive neurodegeneration with
profound cognitive, functional, and behavioral decline .
Question 2
Two of the major pathological hallmarks seen in the Alzheimer's disease brain at
autopsy are plaques composed of ________ and ________ composed of
hyperphosphorylated tau protein.
A) Neurofibrillary tangles; amyloid-beta
B) Amyloid-beta; neurofibrillary tangles
C) Alpha-synuclein; amyloid plaques
D) Tau proteins; alpha-synuclein
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: The two major pathological hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease are
,amyloid-beta plaques (extracellular deposits) and neurofibrillary tangles
composed of hyperphosphorylated tau protein (intracellular). The third major
hallmark is neuronal cell loss, often so profound it can be seen with the naked eye .
Question 3
The third major pathological hallmark seen in the Alzheimer's disease brain at
autopsy is __________ cell loss; it is often so profound that it can be seen with the
naked eye on postmortem examination.
A) Glial
B) Neuronal
C) Vascular
D) Synaptic
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Neuronal cell loss is the third major pathological hallmark of
Alzheimer's disease. This widespread neurodegeneration leads to brain atrophy
and is responsible for the clinical manifestations of cognitive decline .
Question 4
A patient presents with short-term memory loss, impaired executive function,
difficulty with activities of daily living, time and spatial disorientation, language
impairment, and personality changes. These symptoms are most consistent with:
A) Vascular dementia
B) Alzheimer's disease
C) Lewy body dementia
D) Frontotemporal degeneration
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Alzheimer's disease presents with progressive short-term memory loss,
executive dysfunction, difficulty with ADLs, disorientation, language impairment,
, and personality changes. It typically has an insidious onset and gradual
progression .
Question 5
Impaired abstraction, mental flexibility, processing speed, and working memory
with better-preserved verbal memory and slower cognitive decline, with dementia
occurring within several months of a stroke, are characteristic of:
A) Alzheimer's disease
B) Vascular dementia
C) Lewy body dementia
D) Frontotemporal degeneration
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Vascular dementia is characterized by stepwise decline that follows
cerebrovascular events (strokes). Verbal memory is often better preserved than in
Alzheimer's disease, while processing speed and executive functions are more
prominently affected .
Question 6
Visual hallucinations, spontaneous parkinsonism, cognitive fluctuations, and
visuospatial, attention, and executive function deficits that are worse than
memory impairment, with earlier presentation of psychosis and personality
changes, are characteristic of:
A) Alzheimer's disease
B) Vascular dementia
C) Lewy body dementia
D) Frontotemporal degeneration
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: Lewy body dementia is characterized by visual hallucinations,
spontaneous parkinsonism (motor symptoms), and cognitive fluctuations. Memory
