Ch. 24 Trauma Overview

Your patient has a Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score of 13, a systolic blood pressure of 80 mm Hg, and a respiratory rate of 8 breaths/min. His Revised Trauma Score (RTS) is:

9

Which of the following destinations is most appropriate for a 41-year-old male patient who was involved in a rollover motor vehicle collision and is unconscious and unresponsive, assuming that travel times to each is equal?

A Level I or Level II trauma center

Which of the following findings would be LEAST suggestive of the presence of high-energy trauma?

Deployment of the air bag

A 12-year-old male jumped approximately 12 feet from a tree and landed on his feet. He complains of pain to his lower back. What injury mechanism is MOST likely responsible for his back pain?

Energy transmission to the spine

Which of the following interventions is the MOST critical to the outcome of a patient with multisystem trauma?

Rapid transport to a trauma center

Which types of motor vehicle collisions present the greatest potential for multiple impacts?

Rotational and rollover

Which of the following statements regarding gunshot wounds is correct?

The speed of a bullet has the greatest impact on the injury produced.

Which of the following injuries would MOST likely occur as a direct result of the third collision in a motor vehicle crash?

aortic rupture

A young male sustained a gunshot wound to the abdomen during an altercation. As your partner is assessing and managing his airway, you should control the obvious bleeding and then:

assess for an exit wound.

According to the American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma (ACS-COT), an adult trauma patient should be transported to the highest level of trauma center if he or she:

has a GCS score of less than or equal to 13 with a mechanism attributed to trauma.

Following a blunt injury to the head, a 22-year-old female is confused and complains of a severe headache and nausea. On the basis of these signs and symptoms, you should be MOST concerned with the possibility of:

intracranial bleeding.

Approximately 25% of severe injuries to the aorta occur during:

lateral collision

While en route to a major motor vehicle crash, an on-scene police officer advises you that a 6-year-old male who was riding in the front seat is involved. He further states that the child was only wearing a lap belt and that the air bag deployed. On the basis of this information, you should be MOST suspicious that the child has experienced:

neck and facial injuries.

When assessing an elderly patient who fell, it is important to remember that

osteoporosis can cause a fracture as a result of a fall from a standing position

When assessing a patient who experienced a blast injury, it is important to remember that:

primary blast injuries are the most easily overlooked.

When the speed of a motor vehicle doubles, the amount of kinetic energy:

quadruples

A 15-year-old female was struck by a small car while riding her bicycle. She was wearing a helmet and was thrown to the ground, striking her head. In addition to managing problems associated with airway, breathing, and circulation, it is MOST important for you to:

stabilize her entire spine.

According to the Association of Air Medical Services, you should consider air medical transport of a trauma patient if:

traffic conditions hamper the ability to get the patient to a trauma center by ground within the ideal time frame for the best clinical outcome

Force acting over a distance is the definition of:

work

The index of suspicion is MOST accurately defined as:

your awareness and concern for potentially serious underlying injuries.