NPTE-PT General Exam 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A therapist applies moist heat to a patient's lumbar spine. The primary physiological effect that reduces pain and increases tissue extensibility is:
- Decreased nerve conduction velocity
- Increased local circulation and collagen extensibility (Correct answer)
- Vasoconstriction reducing edema
- Increased muscle spindle sensitivity
Correct answer: Increased local circulation and collagen extensibility
Heat increases local blood flow, raises tissue temperature, and decreases collagen stiffness, collectively reducing pain and improving extensibility.
Question 2: Which of the following manual therapy grades (Maitland) is most appropriate for treating pain in an acutely inflamed joint?
- Grade I (Correct answer)
- Grade III
- Grade IV
- Grade V
Correct answer: Grade I
Grade I oscillations are small-amplitude movements at the beginning of range, appropriate for acute pain management with minimal stress on inflamed tissue.
Question 3: A patient with Parkinson's disease exhibits a festinating gait. Which characteristic best describes this pattern?
- Wide base with lateral trunk sway
- Steppage gait with high knee flexion
- Involuntary acceleration with short shuffling steps (Correct answer)
- Unilateral circumduction of the lower extremity
Correct answer: Involuntary acceleration with short shuffling steps
Festination is an involuntary increase in gait speed with progressively shorter shuffling steps, characteristic of Parkinson's disease.
Question 4: During a patient transfer, the therapist should position their feet in which way to maximize stability and reduce injury risk?
- Together and parallel
- Shoulder-width apart with a wide base of support (Correct answer)
- One foot placed behind the other in a narrow stance
- On tiptoe to increase height advantage
Correct answer: Shoulder-width apart with a wide base of support
A shoulder-width stance with a wide base of support lowers the center of gravity and maximizes stability during patient transfers.
Question 5: Which of the following is the correct sequence for donning a sterile gown in an isolation room?
- Hand hygiene → gloves → gown → mask
- Hand hygiene → gown → mask → gloves (Correct answer)
- Mask → gown → hand hygiene → gloves
- Gown → hand hygiene → mask → gloves
Correct answer: Hand hygiene → gown → mask → gloves
The correct PPE donning sequence is hand hygiene, then gown, then mask/respirator, then gloves (gloves last to avoid contaminating them).
Question 6: A patient presents with a positive Phalen's test and tingling in the thumb, index, and middle fingers. Which condition is most likely?
- Cubital tunnel syndrome
- Carpal tunnel syndrome (Correct answer)
- Guyon's canal syndrome
- Thoracic outlet syndrome
Correct answer: Carpal tunnel syndrome
Phalen's test reproduces symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome by compressing the median nerve at the wrist during sustained wrist flexion.
Question 7: When using crutches, the non-weight-bearing (NWB) three-point gait pattern requires the patient to advance the crutches and affected limb simultaneously, then swing:
- Both legs through simultaneously
- The uninvolved leg forward to a point even with or past the crutches (Correct answer)
- The involved leg first, then the uninvolved
- The uninvolved leg first, then bring crutches forward
Correct answer: The uninvolved leg forward to a point even with or past the crutches
In three-point gait for NWB, crutches and affected limb advance together, then the uninvolved leg swings forward to or past the crutch tips.
NPTE-PT General Exam 3
A therapist applies moist heat to a patient's lumbar spine.
The primary physiological effect that reduces pain and increases tissue extensibility is: