Surgical Procedures & Techniques Flashcards
7 cards from real CFA practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Surgical Procedures & Techniques flashcards as text
During a laparoscopic cholecystectomy, the critical view of safety (CVS) requires that the hepatocystic triangle be:
Answer: Cleared of fat and fibrous tissue, with only two structures entering the gallbladder
The CVS requires the hepatocystic triangle cleared of fat/fibrous tissue and only the cystic duct and cystic artery entering the gallbladder base.
The Trendelenburg position during pelvic laparoscopic surgery places the patient:
Answer: Head down, feet up at 15-30 degrees
Trendelenburg (head-down tilt) causes bowel to fall toward the diaphragm by gravity, improving visualization of pelvic structures.
When assisting with an open inguinal hernia repair (Lichtenstein), the mesh is secured to the:
Answer: External oblique aponeurosis and inguinal ligament
In the Lichtenstein tension-free repair, the mesh is sutured to the inguinal ligament inferiorly and the external oblique aponeurosis/conjoined tendon superiorly.
During a thyroidectomy, the first assistant must help protect which nerve by avoiding excessive traction on the thyroid lobe?
Answer: Recurrent laryngeal nerve
The recurrent laryngeal nerve runs in the tracheoesophageal groove and is vulnerable to injury from excessive traction on the thyroid lobe, causing hoarseness or vocal cord paralysis.
In a right hemicolectomy, the ileocolic vessels are divided near their origin from the:
Answer: Superior mesenteric artery
The ileocolic vessels branch from the superior mesenteric artery (SMA) and are divided at or near their SMA origin during oncologic right hemicolectomy.
When using the electrosurgical unit (ESU) to achieve hemostasis of a vessel, the first assistant should:
Answer: Grasp the vessel with forceps and apply brief current away from adjacent tissue
Grasping the vessel with forceps to elevate it from surrounding tissue and applying brief coagulation current minimizes thermal spread and collateral damage.
During a mastectomy, the level I axillary lymph nodes are located:
Answer: Lateral and inferior to the pectoralis minor muscle
Level I axillary nodes lie lateral and inferior to the lateral border of the pectoralis minor muscle and are the first tier dissected in axillary lymph node dissection.