BCSE Anatomy 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which structure separates the anterior and posterior triangles of the neck?
- Hyoid bone
- Sternocleidomastoid muscle (Correct answer)
- Omohyoid muscle
- Anterior scalene muscle
Correct answer: Sternocleidomastoid muscle
The sternocleidomastoid muscle forms the boundary between the anterior and posterior triangles of the neck.
Question 2: Which spinal cord tract carries pain and temperature sensation from the contralateral body?
- Dorsal columns (posterior funiculus)
- Corticospinal tract
- Spinocerebellar tract
- Lateral spinothalamic tract (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Lateral spinothalamic tract
Pain and temperature fibers cross within one to two spinal levels and ascend in the lateral spinothalamic tract to the thalamus.
Question 3: The anatomical position of the appendix is most commonly:
- Pelvic (descending into true pelvis)
- Retrocecal (Correct answer)
- Subcecal
- Paracolic
Correct answer: Retrocecal
In approximately 65% of individuals, the appendix lies in a retrocecal position, which can make the presentation of appendicitis atypical.
Question 4: The pes anserinus is the combined insertion of which three muscles?
- Gracilis, sartorius, semitendinosus (Correct answer)
- Semimembranosus, biceps femoris, gracilis
- Sartorius, rectus femoris, tensor fasciae latae
- Semitendinosus, semimembranosus, biceps femoris
Correct answer: Gracilis, sartorius, semitendinosus
The pes anserinus ('goose's foot') is the conjoined tendon of gracilis, sartorius, and semitendinosus attaching to the anteromedial proximal tibia.
Question 5: Damage to the superior laryngeal nerve (internal branch) would most likely cause:
- Hoarseness
- Loss of sensation above the vocal cords (Correct answer)
- Inability to tense the vocal cords
- Paralysis of all intrinsic laryngeal muscles
Correct answer: Loss of sensation above the vocal cords
The internal branch of the superior laryngeal nerve is purely sensory to the laryngeal mucosa above the vocal cords; its injury eliminates the cough reflex from that region.
Question 6: Which cardiac chamber forms the majority of the anterior (sternocostal) surface of the heart?
- Left ventricle
- Right atrium
- Right ventricle (Correct answer)
- Left atrium
Correct answer: Right ventricle
The right ventricle constitutes most of the sternocostal surface of the heart and is therefore most susceptible to blunt anterior chest trauma.
Question 7: The dorsal root ganglion (DRG) contains the cell bodies of which type of neuron?
- Upper motor neurons
- Lower motor neurons
- First-order sensory neurons (Correct answer)
- Preganglionic sympathetic neurons
Correct answer: First-order sensory neurons
The DRG houses pseudounipolar first-order sensory neuron cell bodies that transmit afferent signals from peripheral receptors to the spinal cord.
BCSE Anatomy 5
Which structure separates the anterior and posterior triangles of the neck?