ATI LPN
NCLEX PN Questions on Respiratory System Questions
Question 1 of 5
What is the causative agent of Q fever?
Correct Answer: A
Rationale: Coxiella burnetii, a hardy intracellular bacterium, causes Q fever, often inhaled from contaminated animal sources, leading to fever and pneumonia. Chlamydophila psittaci causes psittacosis, a bird-related lung infection. Mycoplasma pneumoniae triggers walking pneumonia, a milder atypical pneumonia. Streptococcus pyogenes causes strep throat or scarlet fever, not Q fever. C. burnetii's unique spore-like form and zoonotic transmission distinguish it, requiring doxycycline treatment unlike the others' diverse therapies. Recognizing its role clarifies Q fever's epidemiology linked to farms, not birds or streptococcal spread essential for diagnosis and public health responses in respiratory infection contexts.
Question 2 of 5
The nurse caring for a client with pneumonia reviews the medical administration record and order sheet. Which agent should the nurse expect to administer? (Select all that apply.)
Correct Answer: A
Rationale: Oxygen (A), mucolytics, antibiotics, and bronchodilators treat pneumonia, but A is primary per the document. Oxygen corrects hypoxemia (PaOâ‚‚ <60 mmHg). Mucolytics (B) thin mucus, antibiotics (C) kill bacteria (e.g., azithromycin), and bronchodilators (D) ease breathing. Laxatives are irrelevant. A's emphasis reflects pneumonia's core issue impaired gas exchange from consolidation requires Oâ‚‚, distinguishing it as the expected first-line agent.
Question 3 of 5
___________ is located between two pleural sacs and is the central compartment of the thoracic cavity?
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: The mediastinum, the central thoracic compartment between the pleural sacs, houses the heart, great vessels, trachea, and esophagus, extending from the sternum to the vertebral column. The hilum is the lung's entry point for vessels and bronchi, not a compartment. Pleura are the lung linings, not a central space. The thoracic cage (ribs, sternum, spine) encases the chest, not a specific region. The mediastinum's role as a structural and functional core separating lungs while supporting vital organs makes it distinct, critical in anatomy for understanding thoracic pathology like mediastinal masses or infections affecting central structures.
Question 4 of 5
Which of the following is the function of the trachea?
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: The trachea filters air we breathe, lined with cilia and mucus that trap dust and microbes, preventing lung entry part of the mucociliary escalator. Gaseous exchange occurs in alveoli, not the trachea, which only conducts air. Exhalation is a lung-diaphragm action; the trachea is a passive conduit. 'All' is wrong filtering is its sole listed role. This protective function, supported by C-shaped cartilage keeping it open, ensures clean air reaches the lungs, critical for respiratory health, distinct from exchange or expulsion processes, a key anatomical distinction in airway mechanics.
Question 5 of 5
The outermost layer of the pericardium, which consists of inelastic dense irregular connective tissue, is called the
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: The fibrous pericardium, the pericardium's outermost layer, is inelastic dense irregular connective tissue, anchoring the heart to the diaphragm and sternum, preventing overstretch. The parietal layer is serous, lining the fibrous part, not the outer tissue. Serous pericardium includes parietal and visceral (epicardium) layers, both thin and lubricative. The epicardium is the heart's surface, not pericardial. This tough fibrous layer's protective rigidity contrasts with the serous layers' fluidity, a structural balance critical for heart stability, key in understanding pericardial anatomy and conditions like constrictive pericarditis.