CICM Second Part Exam Practice SAQs 18112015

Here are the practice questions from this week’s written exam practice at The Alfred ICU, with recommended reading from Lifeinthefastlane.com’s Critical Care Compendium:

Q1.

A 20 year-old man presented with fever and altered mental state. His lumbar puncture results are:

CSF: macroscopically cloudy

Red cell count: 8,800 x 106/L

White cell count: 250 x 106/L (97% polymorphs, 3% mononuclear)

Gram stain: occasional gram negative diplococci

a) Describe and interpret the results including the likely diagnosis (50%)

b) Discuss the role of steroids in the management of this condition (50%)

Learn more here:

Q2.

You are called to a “Code Blue” in the outpatient department. A 55 year-old man had a witnessed collapse in the waiting room prior to his booked clinic appointment. Bystander CPR (chest compressions only) have been in progress for 3 minutes when you arrive. The initial rhythm is pulseless electrical activity (PEA).

a) Outline your approach to determining the underlying cause(s) of PEA, including the role of ECG monitoring and point-of-care ultrasound (50%)

b) Discuss the concept of “pseudo-PEA” and the implications for management and prognostication (50%)

Learn more here:

Q3.

A 70 year-old male ICU patient is slow to wean from mechanical ventilation folowing an infective exacerbation of COPD. The nursing staff have noted the presence of a Stage 3 sacral pressure ulcer.

a) What is a Stage 3 pressure ulcer? (10%)

b) Name a recognised pressure injury risk assessment scoring system (10%)

c) List measures that help prevent pressure injuries in ICU patients (40%)

d) Outline your approach to the management of this patient’s Stage 3 pressure ulcer (40%)

Learn more here:



You can access all the previous practice questions since 2014 here:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1_Ta8IvVaVtc5Il7-kJwj6qKGu54OmifJGRUWCXud8dY/edit
See this link on INTENSIVE for exam resources:
https://intensiveblog.com/resources/#3

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