Practice Test GeeksPLAB 1 Practice Test
← All PLAB 1 Flashcard Decks

Clinical Medicine Flashcards

6 cards from real PLAB 1 practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.

Read the first 6 Clinical Medicine flashcards as text

  1. A 28-year-old woman presents at 32 weeks gestation with severe headache, visual disturbances, BP 165/110, and 3+ proteinuria on dipstick. She has pitting oedema. What is the most likely diagnosis?

    Answer: Pre-eclampsia

    Pre-eclampsia is defined as hypertension (≥140/90) with proteinuria after 20 weeks gestation, or hypertension with other features (headache, visual disturbances, liver tenderness, thrombocytopenia). This patient has severe features (BP 165/110, severe headache, visual disturbance) indicating severe pre-eclampsia requiring urgent management.

  2. A 6-year-old boy presents with a 2-day history of high fever, sore throat, and dysphagia. On examination he has a hot-potato voice, drooling, and deviation of the uvula to the right with a bulge on the left side of the soft palate. What is the most likely diagnosis?

    Answer: Peritonsillar abscess (quinsy)

    Peritonsillar abscess (quinsy) presents with trismus (difficulty opening mouth), hot-potato voice, drooling, uvular deviation away from the abscess, and a peritonsillar bulge. It is the most common deep neck space infection and requires urgent ENT review for incision and drainage plus IV antibiotics.

  3. A 70-year-old man presents with back pain, weight loss, and fatigue. Blood tests show: Hb 85g/L, calcium 3.1 mmol/L, creatinine 185 µmol/L. X-ray of the spine shows lytic lesions. Serum protein electrophoresis shows a monoclonal band. What is the most likely diagnosis?

    Answer: Multiple myeloma

    Multiple myeloma classically presents with the CRAB criteria: hyperCalcaemia, Renal impairment, Anaemia, and Bone lesions (lytic). The monoclonal (M) band on serum protein electrophoresis confirms paraproteinaemia. All four CRAB criteria are present here.

  4. A 40-year-old woman presents with increasing proximal muscle weakness, difficulty climbing stairs, and a purple discolouration around her eyes and on her knuckles. CK is markedly elevated. What is the most likely diagnosis?

    Answer: Dermatomyositis

    Dermatomyositis presents with proximal muscle weakness, markedly elevated CK, and characteristic skin changes: heliotrope rash (purple periorbital discolouration) and Gottron's papules (purple papules over knuckles). It is an important diagnosis as it may be a paraneoplastic phenomenon in adults over 40.

  5. A 55-year-old man with long-standing GORD presents for review. He reports dysphagia to solids, odynophagia, and a 5kg weight loss over 2 months. What is the most appropriate next step?

    Answer: Urgent 2-week wait (2WW) OGD referral

    New dysphagia, odynophagia, and weight loss in a patient with long-standing GORD are urgent alarm symptoms suggesting possible oesophageal malignancy. NICE guidelines mandate an urgent 2-week wait referral for OGD. Barrett's oesophagus (a complication of GORD) is a risk factor for oesophageal adenocarcinoma.

  6. A 3-year-old child presents with a 2-day history of barking cough, hoarse voice, and inspiratory stridor, worse at night. He is mildly distressed but maintaining oxygen saturations. What is the most likely diagnosis and management?

    Answer: Croup (laryngotracheobronchitis) — single dose oral/IM dexamethasone

    Croup (viral laryngotracheobronchitis) classically presents in children aged 6 months to 3 years with a barking 'seal-like' cough, hoarse voice, and inspiratory stridor, typically worse at night and following a viral URTI. Oral or IM dexamethasone (single dose) reduces inflammation and hospital admission rates. Epiglottitis is rarer and presents with a much more toxic child who is drooling and cannot swallow.