The ED nurse is assessing the respiratory function of a teenage girl who presented with acute shortness of breath. Auscultation reveals continuous wheezes during inspiration and expiration. This finding is most suggestive of what?

Correct Answer: C

Rationale: The continuous wheezes heard on auscultation during both inspiration and expiration in a teenage girl with acute shortness of breath are highly suggestive of asthma. Asthma is characterized by airway inflammation and bronchoconstriction, leading to wheezing on both inspiration and expiration. Other choices like pleurisy typically present with sharp chest pain worsened by breathing, emphysema with decreased breath sounds and barrel chest, and pneumonia with crackles and possibly fever.

Correct Answer: B

Rationale: The correct answer is B because the chloride shift occurs to transport bicarbonate ions into the blood plasma. This process helps maintain acid-base balance in the body by exchanging chloride ions for bicarbonate ions to regulate pH levels. Choice A is incorrect as the chloride shift is not related to forcing oxygen into tissues. Choice C is incorrect as the chloride shift does not produce salt for the cytosol of blood cells. Choice D is incorrect as the chloride shift does not directly produce carbonic acid but rather helps in maintaining the balance of carbon dioxide and bicarbonate ions.

Correct Answer: A

Rationale: The correct answer is A: apneustic. Stimulation of the apneustic center in the brainstem prolongs inspiration by sending signals to the respiratory muscles to maintain inspiration. The apneustic center plays a role in regulating the depth and duration of breathing. Explanation for why other choices are incorrect: B: Pneumotaxic center helps regulate the respiratory rate by inhibiting inspiration, not prolonging it. C: Expiratory center is responsible for controlling expiration, not inspiration. D: Baroreceptor center is involved in regulating blood pressure, not respiratory functions.

Correct Answer: C

Rationale: The correct answer is C: alveoli. The conducting zone of the respiratory system includes structures that transport air to and from the gas exchange sites. Alveoli are the primary sites of gas exchange, not part of the conducting zone. Pharynx (A), nasal cavity (B), and bronchi (D) are all part of the conducting zone as they help in air transportation but do not directly participate in gas exchange like alveoli do. Therefore, alveoli is the correct answer as it does not belong to the conducting zone.

Correct Answer: A

Rationale: The correct answer is A: cilia. Cilia are tiny hair-like structures in the respiratory tract that sweep mucus and dirt out of the lungs to keep them clean. Bronchioles are small airways in the lungs through which air passes, not involved in filtering. Hair in the lungs is not a natural structure; it would be harmful. Choice D is incorrect because not all options listed are involved in filtering and keeping the mucus and dirt away from the lungs.