General Surgery Board Review MCQ Flashcards
7 cards from real General Surgery Board Review practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 General Surgery Board Review MCQ flashcards as text
A 40-year-old woman has a thyroid nodule measuring 1.8 cm with microcalcifications and irregular margins on ultrasound. FNA shows papillary thyroid carcinoma. What is the most appropriate surgical treatment?
Answer: Total thyroidectomy
Total thyroidectomy is recommended for papillary thyroid carcinoma greater than 1 cm, allowing RAI therapy and simplifying surveillance with thyroglobulin monitoring.
During a Whipple procedure, which of the following anastomoses is NOT performed?
Answer: Choledochoduodenostomy
The Whipple (pancreaticoduodenectomy) includes pancreaticojejunostomy, hepaticojejunostomy, and gastrojejunostomy; the common bile duct is anastomosed to the jejunum, not the duodenum, which is resected.
Which nutritional marker best reflects acute changes in a surgical patient's nutritional status over a 2- to 3-day period?
Answer: Prealbumin (transthyretin)
Prealbumin has a half-life of 2-3 days, making it the best short-term marker for acute nutritional changes, unlike albumin which has a 20-day half-life.
A patient with a suspected sigmoid volvulus is hemodynamically stable without signs of peritonitis. What is the first-line treatment?
Answer: Flexible sigmoidoscopy with rectal tube decompression
Flexible sigmoidoscopy with rectal tube placement achieves decompression in 70-90% of sigmoid volvulus cases and is the first-line treatment in stable patients without peritonitis.
Which of the following is an absolute contraindication to laparoscopic appendectomy?
Answer: Uncorrected coagulopathy
Uncorrected coagulopathy is an absolute contraindication to any laparoscopic surgery due to uncontrollable bleeding risk; the other options are relative contraindications.
A 65-year-old man has a 3 cm solitary liver lesion discovered incidentally. He has known cirrhosis and elevated AFP of 450 ng/mL. What is the most likely diagnosis?
Answer: Hepatocellular carcinoma
A > 2 cm liver lesion with classic arterial enhancement on imaging in a cirrhotic patient plus elevated AFP is diagnostic of hepatocellular carcinoma by AASLD criteria.
Which of the following findings on colonoscopy in a patient with ulcerative colitis is an indication for prophylactic proctocolectomy?
Answer: High-grade dysplasia confirmed on repeat biopsy
High-grade dysplasia confirmed by expert pathology on repeat colonoscopy in ulcerative colitis warrants proctocolectomy due to the high risk of synchronous or future colorectal cancer.
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