Practice Test Geeks(ABA) ASA (American Society of Anesthesiologists) Board Certification Practice Test
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Anesthesia Principles & Practices Flashcards

7 cards from real ABA practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.

Read the first 7 Anesthesia Principles & Practices flashcards as text

  1. A patient on chronic opioid therapy requires higher-than-expected intraoperative opioid doses. This phenomenon is BEST explained by:

    Answer: Upregulation of opioid receptor cycling and opioid-induced hyperalgesia

    Chronic opioid use leads to receptor desensitization, downregulation, and central sensitization (hyperalgesia), increasing analgesic requirements.

  2. Which muscle relaxant is MOST appropriate for a patient with a history of pseudocholinesterase deficiency requiring urgent intubation?

    Answer: Rocuronium at 1.2 mg/kg with sugammadex available

    High-dose rocuronium (1.2 mg/kg) provides RSI conditions comparable to succinylcholine, and its effect is immediately reversible with sugammadex, bypassing pseudocholinesterase entirely.

  3. During controlled hypotension for spine surgery, which agent BEST preserves spinal cord perfusion pressure while reducing MAP?

    Answer: Nicardipine, preserving spinal cord autoregulation better than sodium nitroprusside

    Nicardipine (calcium channel blocker) reduces MAP without the cyanide toxicity risk of SNP and causes less reflex tachycardia, better preserving spinal cord perfusion.

  4. The Fick principle for calculating cardiac output requires measurement of all EXCEPT:

    Answer: Systemic vascular resistance

    Cardiac output by Fick = VO2 / (CaO2 − CvO2); SVR is derived from cardiac output rather than being an input variable.

  5. A patient develops ST-segment depression with hypotension after epidural activation for labor analgesia. The MOST likely cause is:

    Answer: Hypotension reducing coronary perfusion pressure in a patient with occult CAD

    Epidural-induced sympathectomy causes hypotension; in patients with undiagnosed coronary artery disease, reduced diastolic perfusion pressure produces subendocardial ischemia.

  6. Which statement BEST describes the pharmacokinetic principle of context-sensitive half-time?

    Answer: Time for plasma concentration to fall 50% depends on infusion duration, not just elimination half-life

    Context-sensitive half-time accounts for drug redistribution back into plasma from peripheral compartments, making recovery time dependent on infusion duration.

  7. Which factor MOST reliably predicts difficult bag-mask ventilation in an adult patient?

    Answer: Presence of a beard combined with obesity (BMI >26)

    The MOANS mnemonic identifies predictors of difficult mask ventilation; beard (mask seal) plus obesity (reduced FRC, increased airway resistance) are among the strongest combined predictors.