Practice Test GeeksTNCC - Trauma Nurse Core Curriculum Practice Test
← All TNCC Flashcard Decks

Airway and Ventilation Management Flashcards

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

Read the first 6 Airway and Ventilation Management flashcards as text

  1. A trauma patient with facial burns and singed nasal hairs has a hoarse voice. The priority intervention is:

    Answer: Early endotracheal intubation before airway edema progresses

    Hoarseness with facial burns and singed nasal hairs indicates impending airway compromise from edema. Early intubation is critical before swelling makes it impossible.

  2. Which airway adjunct is most appropriate as a temporizing measure for an unconscious trauma patient with intact gag reflex?

    Answer: Nasopharyngeal airway (NPA)

    A nasopharyngeal airway is better tolerated in patients with an intact gag reflex compared to an oropharyngeal airway, which would stimulate gagging and vomiting.

  3. During rapid sequence intubation of a trauma patient, cricoid pressure (Sellick maneuver) is applied primarily to:

    Answer: Prevent aspiration by occluding the esophagus

    Cricoid pressure compresses the esophagus against the cervical vertebral body, reducing the risk of passive regurgitation and aspiration during intubation.

  4. A trauma patient has oxygen saturation of 85% despite bag-valve-mask ventilation with 100% oxygen. Breath sounds are absent on the left with tracheal deviation to the right. The immediate intervention is:

    Answer: Needle decompression at the left 2nd intercostal space, midclavicular line

    Absent breath sounds, tracheal deviation away from the affected side, and hypoxemia indicate tension pneumothorax requiring immediate needle decompression.

  5. Which of the following confirms correct endotracheal tube placement most reliably?

    Answer: Continuous waveform capnography (ETCO2)

    Continuous waveform capnography providing end-tidal CO2 detection is the gold standard for confirming and continuously monitoring correct endotracheal tube placement.

  6. A trauma patient requires a surgical airway. The anatomical landmark for cricothyrotomy is the membrane between the:

    Answer: Thyroid cartilage and cricoid cartilage

    An emergency cricothyrotomy is performed through the cricothyroid membrane, located between the inferior border of the thyroid cartilage and the superior border of the cricoid cartilage.