Question 1

From which part of the brain does the spinal cord originate?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: The spinal cord is a continuation of the brainstem beginning at the foramen magnum where the medulla oblongata transitions into the spinal cord.

Question 2

Which condition occurs due to a lack of blood supply to a part of the brain?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: A stroke results from interrupted cerebral blood flow causing ischemia and infarction. Epilepsy is a seizure disorder, meningitis is infection of the meninges, and Parkinson’s disease is a neurodegenerative movement disorder.

Question 3

A nurse touches the patient's face with a cotton swab on the forehead, cheek, and chin and instructs the patient to clench the teeth. The nurse is assessing?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Light touch to the forehead, cheek, and chin tests CN V sensory branches (V1–V3), while clenching the teeth tests CN V motor function to muscles of mastication; together they assess both motor and sensory functions of the trigeminal nerve.

Question 4

A condition, causing the affected person to be unable to understand or comprehend the language (poor comprehension with intact repetition (fluent output) is termed as?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Wernicke's aphasia presents with fluent speech and impaired language comprehension. Broca's is nonfluent, conduction has impaired repetition with relatively preserved comprehension, and global affects all modalities.

Question 5

Assess visual activity with Snellen chart and perform ophthalmoscopic exam, check peripheral vision by confrontation, check color vision?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Visual acuity, visual fields by confrontation, color vision, and fundoscopic exam assess the optic nerve (CN II).

Question 6

What is the name of the biggest part of the human brain?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: The cerebrum is the largest part of the human brain, comprising the two cerebral hemispheres. The cerebellum and brainstem are smaller structures.

Question 7

Which of the following is not a neurotransmitter?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Cortisone is a glucocorticoid hormone from the adrenal cortex, not a neurotransmitter. Acetylcholine, epinephrine, and norepinephrine act as neurotransmitters.

Question 8

What covers the spinal cord?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: The spinal cord is enclosed by the three meninges (dura mater, arachnoid mater, pia mater). Ganglia are clusters of neuronal cell bodies, and the peritoneum is an abdominal membrane.

Question 9

Positive Brudzinski and Kernig’s signs are manifestations of which condition?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Brudzinski and Kernig signs indicate meningeal irritation, a classic finding in meningitis.

Question 10

The corpus callosum of the cerebrum is made up of which type of matter?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: The corpus callosum consists of myelinated commissural axons, which constitute white matter.

Question 11

What is the term for the inability to carry out normal activities despite intact motor function?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Apraxia is the inability to perform purposeful activities despite intact motor strength and coordination; other options refer to loss of pleasure, lack of interest, or memory loss.

Question 12

How many pairs of spinal nerves are there?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Humans have 31 pairs of spinal nerves: 8 cervical, 12 thoracic, 5 lumbar, 5 sacral, and 1 coccygeal.

Question 13

What is the term for the inability to speak or understand spoken words?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Aphasia is a language disorder causing impaired speaking or comprehension. Agnosia is failure to recognize objects, apraxia is impaired motor planning, and insomnia is a sleep problem.

Question 14

What is the most common cause of tonic-clonic seizures in a 23-year-old client?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: In young adults, new-onset generalized (tonic–clonic) seizures most commonly result from head injury. Stroke is more common in the elderly; congenital defects present earlier; electrolyte imbalance is a less common cause in this age group.

Question 15

Which of the following functions is influenced by the autonomic nervous system?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Autonomic nervous system controls involuntary smooth muscle activity; gastrointestinal motility (peristalsis) is a classic ANS-regulated function via the enteric system modulated by parasympathetic and sympathetic inputs. Knee-jerk and blinking are somatic reflex/voluntary actions.

Question 16

Which cranial nerve regulates heart rate?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: The vagus nerve (CN X) provides parasympathetic innervation to the heart, acting on the SA and AV nodes to slow heart rate.

Question 17

Which of the following is not a memory disorder?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Amnesia, hypermnesia, and paramnesia are types of memory disorders; anemia is a hematologic condition and not a disorder of memory.

Question 18

Neuron is the study of what?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: The prefix neuro- refers to nerves; neurons are nerve cells. Thus the correct focus of study is nerves.

Question 19

Which of the following is not a motor cranial nerve?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: The optic nerve (CN II) is purely sensory for vision, not motor. The oculomotor (III), trochlear (IV), and accessory (XI) are motor cranial nerves.

Question 20

The nurse is caring for the client following a cerebral vascular accident. Which portion of the brain is responsible for taste, smell, and hearing?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: The temporal lobe contains the primary auditory cortex and olfactory areas and is commonly associated with taste, smell, and hearing. Occipital is vision; frontal is motor/executive functions; parietal is somatosensory.

Question 21

The client is admitted to the unit after a motor vehicle accident with a temperature of 102°F rectally. The most likely explanations for the elevated temperature is that?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: The hypothalamus regulates body temperature; head trauma can cause hypothalamic injury leading to hyperthermia. Infection from abrasions is unlikely immediately post-accident, option C is an intervention not an explanation, and the frontal lobe is not a temperature-control center.

Question 22

A young child is admitted for treatment of lead poisoning. The nurse recognizes that the MOST serious effect of chronic lead poisoning is?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Lead is a potent neurotoxin; chronic exposure most severely damages the CNS, causing cognitive deficits, encephalopathy, seizures, and even death—more serious than anemia, renal tubular effects, or growth delays.

Question 23

In addition to disturbances in mental awareness and orientation, a client with cognitive impairment is also likely to show loss of ability in?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Cognitive impairment primarily affects higher-order cognitive functions such as learning, executive function, creativity, and judgment rather than sensory input, pure motor endurance, or balance alone.

Question 24

Which of the following cranial nerves are present in the posterior fossa?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: The posterior cranial fossa contains the pons, medulla, and cerebellum; cranial nerves V–XII arise from or course through this region. CN III and IV are associated with the midbrain above the tentorium, not the posterior fossa.

Question 25

Clear fluid draining from the ear and nose is indicative of which condition?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: CSF leak (clear drainage from ear or nose: otorrhea/rhinorrhea) commonly follows a basilar skull fracture due to dural tear.

Question 26

After a brain attack, a client is unable to differentiate between heat, cold, sharp, and dull sensory stimulation; which lobe of the brain is likely affected?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: The parietal lobe contains the primary somatosensory cortex responsible for processing temperature and pain; damage impairs discrimination of heat/cold and sharp/dull.

Question 27

Which shunt is most commonly used in the management of hydrocephalus?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: A ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt is the standard and most commonly used diversion for CSF in hydrocephalus due to ease of placement and lower complication rates compared with ventriculoatrial or pleural shunts.

Question 28

Foot drop occurs due to injury of which nerve?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Foot drop is classically due to injury of the common peroneal nerve, which denervates dorsiflexors via the deep peroneal branch.

Question 29

What type of receptors are affected by tactile, painful, and thermal stimuli?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Touch, pain, and temperature are somatic sensations detected by sensory receptors in the skin (cutaneous sense organs). The other options are not receptor types.

Question 30

What is another name for the cerebrum?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Correct synonym for cerebrum is telencephalon. Thalamus and hypothalamus are diencephalon structures, cerebellum is hindbrain, and midbrain is mesencephalon.

Question 31

At what age does the glabella reflex disappear?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: The glabellar reflex is a primitive frontal release reflex present in infancy that is normally inhibited as frontal pathways mature; it typically disappears by about 1 year. Persistence (non-habituation) later in life is abnormal, e.g., Myerson sign.

Question 32

Which cranial nerve is mostly affected in bulbar palsy?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Bulbar palsy is a lower motor neuron lesion of the medulla primarily involving CN IX–XII; the vagus nerve (CN X) is most commonly affected due to its major role in palatal and pharyngeal muscles causing dysphagia and dysphonia.

Question 33

Which neurological disorder is characterized by progressive muscle weakness and exacerbations?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Multiple sclerosis has a relapsing-remitting course with exacerbations and can cause progressive weakness, unlike ALS, Parkinson's, or Huntington's which do not have exacerbations.

Question 34

Which of the following are cranial nerves except?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Trigeminal (V), olfactory (I), and glossopharyngeal (IX) are cranial nerves; the sciatic nerve is a peripheral nerve from the lumbosacral plexus, not a cranial nerve.

Question 35

What type of seizure is characterized by uncontrollable jerking movements?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Clonic seizures feature rhythmic, repetitive jerking of muscles. Tonic causes stiffening, absence causes brief staring, and myoclonic are brief shock-like jerks rather than sustained jerking.

Question 36

Which part of the brain is known as the seat of intelligence?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Higher cognitive functions such as reasoning, memory, and intelligence are primarily mediated by the cerebral cortex of the cerebrum.

Question 37

Meningitis is inflammation of which part of the body?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Meningitis is inflammation of the meninges, the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord.

Question 38

Where are Betz cells found?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Betz cells are giant pyramidal neurons located in layer V of the primary motor cortex (precentral gyrus).

Question 39

What is the term for one-sided head pain?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Migraine headaches classically present with unilateral head pain; the other options are not terms for one-sided head pain.

Question 40

A patient came to physiotherapy OPD with a baseball blow to the posterior neck, creating sudden pressure in the posterior triangle. On assessment, the patient is unable to rotate the scapula during abduction. Which nerve is damaged and which muscle does it supply?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Upward rotation of the scapula, necessary for full abduction, is produced primarily by the serratus anterior (innervated by the long thoracic nerve) and trapezius. Injury to the long thoracic nerve in the posterior triangle impairs this rotation, causing difficulty with abduction and scapular winging.

Question 41

A patient presented to physiotherapy OPD with pain along the medial side of the arm, forearm and little and ring finger. After assessment you came to know that this nerve originates from medial cord of brachial plexus. Which nerve is involved?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Pain involving the little and ring fingers is characteristic of ulnar nerve involvement. The ulnar nerve is a terminal branch of the medial cord of the brachial plexus. Medial cutaneous nerves supply skin of arm/forearm only and do not account for finger symptoms.

Question 42

Which of the following fibers participates in high-frequency pain transmission?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Pain (nociception) is carried by A-delta fibers for fast, sharp pain and C fibers for slow, dull pain. A-alpha, A-beta, and B fibers are not primary pain fibers.

Question 43

A client is admitted for treatment of a frontal lobe brain tumor. Which of the following assessments would the nurse expect to find?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Frontal lobe lesions affect affect, judgment, and behavior, commonly causing emotional lability. Respiratory depression is brainstem, hormonal imbalance is hypothalamic/pituitary, and visual field deficits are typically occipital or optic pathway.

Question 44

Select the brain and spinal cord regions, which are involved in the transmission of pain?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: All listed structures participate in nociception: substantia gelatinosa (dorsal horn processing), thalamic nuclei (relay and perception), and limbic/hypothalamic areas (affective-autonomic components).

Question 45

Which of the following supraspinal structures is implicated in pain-modulating descending pathways?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: The periaqueductal gray (PAG) in the midbrain is the key supraspinal center that initiates descending pain inhibition via projections to the rostral ventromedial medulla and spinal cord, utilizing endogenous opioids.

Question 46

Jane had an injury to her cerebellum. Which of the following is likely to occur?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: The cerebellum coordinates balance and coordination; damage commonly causes ataxia and difficulty maintaining balance. Vision, hearing, and swallowing are primarily mediated by other brain regions.

Question 47

Which neurotransmitter is the cause of convulsions in eclampsia?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Seizures result from excessive excitatory neurotransmission via glutamate (e.g., NMDA receptors). Magnesium sulfate treats eclampsia partly by antagonizing NMDA receptors, supporting glutamate’s role.

Question 48

Which nerve is called the musician's nerve?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: The ulnar nerve is known as the musician's nerve because it innervates many intrinsic hand muscles responsible for fine finger movements used in playing instruments.

Question 49

What is the EEG pattern in REM sleep?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: REM sleep shows low-voltage, high-frequency EEG activity (sawtooth/beta-like), hence low amplitude and rapid waves.

Question 50

Where is the respiratory center of the body located?

Accepted Answer

Answer reason: Primary respiratory centers (dorsal and ventral respiratory groups) reside in the medulla oblongata, which generates the basic rhythm of breathing. The pons modulates but is not the main center.

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