Asthma Quiz

Focused SBA-style practice, followed by the answer and explanation for every question.

Free now: 5 questions
Full bank: 54 questions
Answers: Explained

Free question

Try one with the answer

A question from this quiz. Answer it to see the explanation students get.

Which physical examination finding is most characteristic of an acute asthma attack?

A Reduced chest expansion on one side only
B Dullness to percussion over one lung field
C Stridor heard loudest over the neck
D Inspiratory crackles heard at the lung bases
E Expiratory wheeze on chest auscultation ✓

The answer is E: Expiratory wheeze on chest auscultation

Explanation

Why E is correct

See Symptoms. Option E is correct. During an asthma attack the airways narrow because of bronchoconstriction (tightening of the muscle in the airway walls), swelling of the airway lining and thick mucus. Air moving through narrowed tubes becomes turbulent and makes a continuous, coarse, whistling sound called a wheeze. It is heard mainly on expiration, because the airways narrow further as the pressure in the chest rises when the patient breathes out. The common symptoms are a dry cough (often worse at night), wheeze, breathlessness and chest tightness. On examination the patient may also have a fast breathing rate, a fast pulse and low oxygen saturation. In a very severe attack the chest can become silent, because so little air is moving that no wheeze can be heard, so a quiet chest in a breathless asthmatic is an ominous sign, not a reassuring one. A simple memory aid: asthma whistles on the way out.

Finding: Expiratory wheeze, a continuous whistling sound.
Cause: Narrowed airways make airflow turbulent, mainly on breathing out.
Warning sign: A silent chest in a breathless asthmatic is ominous.

Why the other options are incorrect

A. Reduced chest expansion on one side only: Asthma affects both lungs, so any reduction in chest movement is on both sides. Reduced expansion on one side points to a problem confined to one side, such as a pneumothorax or pleural effusion.
B. Dullness to percussion over one lung field: Dullness suggests increased tissue density, such as consolidation, a collapsed lobe or a tumour, and a stony dullness points to a pleural effusion. It does not occur in asthma.
C. Stridor heard loudest over the neck: Stridor is a high-pitched sound made by narrowing of the upper airway, such as from a foreign body, and it is loudest over the neck. Asthma narrows the lower airways, so wheeze is the typical sound.
D. Inspiratory crackles heard at the lung bases: Crackles are brief popping sounds that suggest fluid or secretions in the small airways and air spaces, as in pulmonary oedema, pneumonia or pulmonary fibrosis. They are not the typical sound of asthma.

Easy

With Premium, questions you miss become Revision Coach flashcards, scheduled for review.

Question preview

What you will practise

More questions from this set. Start the quiz to answer them and see each explanation.

1
In an adult with an asthma exacerbation, which peak expiratory flow (PEF) result and accompanying findings fit the moderate category of the BTS/SIGN classification?
2
A 19-year-old woman presents with episodic wheeze and cough, worse at night and after exercise. Spirometry is performed before and after inhaled salbutamol. Which spirometry finding is most supportive of a diagnosis of asthma?

Revise before you test

Review SimpleMed's doctor-written article, then return here to check recall.

Read the topic article

Need wider coverage?

Explore every Respiratory System topic set, or build a tailored mixed session.

Browse subject quizzes