Practice Test Geeks(ABEM) American Board of Emergency Medicine Practice Test
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Cardiovascular & Respiratory Emergencies Flashcards

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

Read the first 7 Cardiovascular & Respiratory Emergencies flashcards as text

  1. A patient presents with narrow-complex tachycardia at 160 bpm, regular rhythm, and hemodynamic stability. Vagal maneuvers fail. What is the FIRST-LINE pharmacologic treatment?

    Answer: Adenosine 6mg rapid IV push

    Adenosine 6mg rapid IV push is first-line for stable SVT because it transiently blocks AV nodal conduction and terminates re-entry circuits.

  2. A patient with end-stage renal disease presents with peaked T-waves, widening QRS, and a sine-wave pattern on ECG. The MOST immediately life-saving treatment is:

    Answer: Calcium gluconate IV

    Calcium gluconate immediately stabilizes the cardiac membrane in severe hyperkalemia, buying time while other measures to lower potassium are implemented.

  3. Which clinical sign differentiates obstructive shock from distributive shock?

    Answer: Cool, clamped extremities with elevated JVP

    Obstructive shock (e.g., PE, tamponade, tension pneumothorax) presents with elevated JVP and cool extremities due to mechanical obstruction impeding cardiac output.

  4. A 65-year-old smoker with known COPD presents in respiratory failure. ABG shows pH 7.22, PaCO2 78, PaO2 52. The MOST appropriate initial ventilatory support is:

    Answer: Non-invasive positive pressure ventilation (BiPAP)

    BiPAP is the preferred initial ventilatory support for COPD exacerbation with hypercapnic respiratory failure as it reduces intubation rates and mortality.

  5. A previously healthy 30-year-old male presents with sudden pleuritic chest pain and dyspnea after lifting weights. CXR shows a 25% pneumothorax on the right. He is hemodynamically stable. Management is:

    Answer: Needle aspiration or small-bore chest tube

    A symptomatic primary spontaneous pneumothorax >15-20% in a stable patient is treated with needle aspiration or small-bore chest tube placement.

  6. A 68-year-old woman presents with acute decompensated heart failure and severe dyspnea. Despite diuretics and nitroglycerin, she remains hypoxic with SpO2 86%. The BEST next step is:

    Answer: Apply CPAP via non-invasive ventilation

    CPAP reduces work of breathing, improves oxygenation, and decreases preload in acute cardiogenic pulmonary edema, reducing intubation rates.

  7. Which ECG finding during SVT suggests the rhythm is atrial flutter rather than AVNRT?

    Answer: Sawtooth flutter waves at 300 bpm in leads II, III, aVF

    Atrial flutter characteristically shows sawtooth flutter waves at approximately 300 bpm (atrial rate) in inferior leads, often with 2:1 AV conduction giving a ventricular rate of 150 bpm.