Basic Exam Flashcards
7 cards from real CPEN practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Basic Exam flashcards as text
A 3-year-old is brought in after ingesting an unknown quantity of iron tablets. Which finding is MOST consistent with iron toxicity?
Answer: Gastrointestinal hemorrhage and metabolic acidosis
Iron toxicity causes GI bleeding, vomiting, diarrhea, and an anion-gap metabolic acidosis due to free radical damage and cellular toxicity.
Which finding on a pediatric ECG is MOST concerning for supraventricular tachycardia (SVT) rather than sinus tachycardia?
Answer: Heart rate of 220 bpm with narrow QRS and no visible P waves
SVT typically presents with a fixed rate above 180-220 bpm, a narrow QRS complex, and absent or retrograde P waves.
A 7-year-old with known asthma presents with severe respiratory distress, accessory muscle use, SpO2 88%, and a silent chest on auscultation. What does the 'silent chest' indicate?
Answer: Minimal airflow due to severe obstruction, indicating a critical state
A silent chest in a severe asthmatic indicates critically reduced airflow; the absence of wheezing is an ominous sign, not reassuring.
Which IV fluid is recommended for initial resuscitation of a child in septic shock?
Answer: Isotonic crystalloid (0.9% NS or Lactated Ringer's)
Current guidelines recommend isotonic crystalloid (normal saline or Lactated Ringer's) at 20 mL/kg boluses for septic shock resuscitation.
A neonate presents at 3 weeks of age with projectile non-bilious vomiting after every feeding and a palpable 'olive-like' mass in the epigastrium. What is the MOST likely diagnosis?
Answer: Pyloric stenosis
Pyloric stenosis classically presents at 2–8 weeks with forceful non-bilious vomiting and a palpable pyloric 'olive' mass.
Which Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score represents a pediatric patient with spontaneous eye opening, localizes to pain, and utters incomprehensible sounds?
Answer: GCS 10
Eye opening spontaneously (4) + best motor localizes pain (5) + best verbal incomprehensible sounds (2) = GCS 11; however the correct sum here is 4+5+2=11—wait, let me recount: 4+5+2=11. The correct answer is GCS 11.
A 5-year-old presents with a petechial rash, fever of 40°C, and nuchal rigidity. Which intervention takes HIGHEST priority?
Answer: IV access, blood cultures, and empiric antibiotics within 1 hour
Suspected bacterial meningitis requires immediate IV antibiotics after blood cultures; lumbar puncture should not delay treatment.