Topic: Dementia
Subject: Medicine
An 85 year old white male is brought to you for the first time by his son. The father has recently seen a neurologist who performed a workup for dementia and diagnosed moderate Alzheimers disease. Which one of the following is true regarding the use of a cholinesterase inhibitor in this patient?
It is too late to initiate cholinesterase therapy
Agitation is often intensified by these agents
Memory is likely to improve significantly
Nursing-home placement may be delayed a year or longer
Correct Answer :
D. Nursing-home placement may be delayed a year or longer
Medications for dementia should be prescribed with caution, and the patient watched closely for side effects. Currently available cholinesterase inhibitors are at least as effective for vascular dementia as they are for Alzheimers dementia, although they are not approved for this use by the FDA. These agents include donepezil, rivastigmine, and galantamine, and they are often helpful in Alzheimers disease patients with agitation. Anticholinesterase therapy is considered the standard of care for Alzheimers disease, and therapy can begin at any stage in the disease process, although early therapy is the most beneficial. While the medication will not restore memory, it does prevent the rapid loss of more memory. Long-term studies on effectiveness are still in progress, but most evidence at present indicates that nursing-home placement can be delayed by a year and possibly longer.
Related Questions
Topic: Seizure
Subject: Medicine
A 32-year-old female experiences an episode of unresponsiveness associated with jerking movements of her arms and legs. Which one of the following presentations would make a diagnosis of true seizure more likely?
Post-event confusion
Eye closure during the event
A history of fibromyalgia
A history of chronic back pain
Topic: Seizure
Subject: Medicine
A 52-year-old male with a history of seizure attacks suffered from loss of consciousness and tonic and clonic muscular contractions. His tongue fell back into the throat and he choked. What is the most likely diagnosis of this presentation?
Petit mal seizure
Grand mal seizure
Myoclonic seizure
Atonic seizure
Topic: Cholinergic Toxidrome
Subject: Medicine
A 37 year old male arrives at the Emergency Department unconscious. He is warm and sweaty. His heart rate is 52 bpm, his BP is 90/60. His pupils are constricted, his eyes are teary, and he is drooling. You assume he is suffering from a toxidrome.
What antidote will you give him?
Flumazenil
Naloxone
Glucagon
Atropine
Topic: Cauda Equina Syndrome
Subject: Medicine
A 65-year-old male presents with a 1-month history of problems passing urine. He says that his bladder will feel full when he needs to urinate, but the urine stream is weak and his bladder does not feel as if it has emptied completely. The symptoms have become increasingly severe over the past week. Other symptoms include upper respiratory congestion for 3 days which he has treated with an over-thecounter decongestant with some relief, constipation with no passage of stool in the past 9 days, and increasing low back pain incompletely relieved with ibuprofen, with associated weakness in both legs. Examination shows a healthy-appearing male who is moderately overweight. He is afebrile and vital signs are normal. There is no abdominal tenderness and no masses are detected. A rectal examination reveals a large amount of hard stool in the rectum; a markedly enlarged (4+), boggy, tender prostate gland; laxity of the anal sphincter; and numbness in the perianal area. Urinalysis shows trace protein and 10-20 WBCs/hpf. Ultrasonography shows a post-void residual volume of 250 mL (normal for age <100).
Which one of the following must be done urgently in this patient?
Foley catheterization
Hospitalization for intravenous antibiotics
Digital disimpaction of the rectum, and Fleet enemas until clear
MRI of the lumbosacral spine
Topic: Brain Death
Subject: Medicine
A 35 year old man has been on life support systems for the past 48 hours following blunt head trauma. Which of the following is the most important criterion to declare the patient brain dead and to permit removal of life support systems?
Bedside EEG showing no electrical activity
Decorticate and decerebrate posturing
Failure to respond to electroconvulsive stimuli
Glasgow coma score of 3 or less
Topic: Huntington Chorea
Subject: Medicine
A patient previously diagnosed with Huntington chorea (HC) comes for a family planning consult with his wife. He states that his father had the disease and his mother was unaffected. They ask you what is the likelihood having a son with this condition?
Zero
25%
50%
75%
Topic: Subarachnoid Hemorrhage
Subject: Medicine
A 36-year-old female presents with the sudden onset of severe headache, nausea, and photophobia. Her level of consciousness is progressively diminishing. Which one of the following would be the most appropriate next step?
Head CT without contrast
Head CT with contrast
Head MRI
Lumbar puncture
Topic: Mini Mental Status Exam (or MMSE)
Subject: Medicine
While performing the Mini-Mental State Exam the PCP asks her patient to copy the following design. What cognitive function is being assessed by this request?
Language
Orientation
Registration
Visual-motor integrity
Topic: Horner's Syndrome
Subject: Medicine
A 54-year-old white male presents with drooping of his right eyelid for 3 weeks. On examination, he has ptosis of the right upper lid, miosis of the right pupil, and decreased sweating on the right side of his face. Extraocular muscle movements are intact. In addition to a complete history and physical examination, which one of the following would be most appropriate at this point?
A chest radiograph
MRI of the brain and orbits
131 Iodine thyroid scanning
A fasting blood glucose level
Topic: Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus
Subject: Medicine
A 76-year-old male is brought to your office by his son. The patient complains of dizziness that has slowly been worsening over the past year. His description is vague, but he says that he notices the dizziness when he tries to walk. The review of systems is normal, except for increasing problems with his prostate in the last 6 months, with dribbling and accidents at times. The patient admits to going more often, and sometimes without warning. The son states that his father seems more forgetful, slower of speech, and not as full of life as he used to be. A neurologic examination reveals the patient to be oriented x 3, with a somewhat flat affect and a wide-based, slow, shuffling gate. The examination is otherwise normal. His Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score is 22 out of 30. No tremor is noted. A CBC, creatinine level, TSH level, vitamin B12 level and VDRL are all normal.
Which one of the following should you do next?
Order a brain MRI
Prescribe sertraline (Zoloft)
Prescribe carbidopa/levodopa (Sinemet)
Order physical therapy
Topic: Temporal Arteritis
Subject: Medicine
A female patient complains of a severe headache and jaw pain when she chews. She also complains of shoulder pain and bilateral wrist weakness. Initial lab tests show an ESR of 75 (normal is less than 30).
What is the most appropriate diagnosis?
Rheumatoid Arthritis
Temporal Arteritis
Polymyositis
Sarcoidosis
Topic: Status Epilepticus
Subject: Medicine
A 58-year-old male with a history of seizure attacks suffered from a 30 min loss of consciousness with repetitive seizures with no recovery of consciousness between attacks. What is the disorder this patient is suffering from?
Tonic-clonic seizure
Absence seizure
Atonic seizure
Status epilepticus
Topic: Temporal Arteritis
Subject: Medicine
A 75-year-old female presents with a 2-month history of bilateral headache, diffuse myalgias, and diplopia. On examination she has substantially diminished vision in her left eye, but no other neurologic findings. A moderately tender, cordlike structure is palpable just anterior to her ear and extending up to her lateral scalp. Blood tests show a markedly elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate.
Which one of the following would be most appropriate at this point?
Clopidogrel (Plavix)
High-dose corticosteroids
NSAIDs
Dipyridamole/aspirin (Aggrenox)
Topic: Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus
Subject: Medicine
An 81-year-old female is brought to your office by her son. He reports a decrease in his mothers memory and prolonged delays in her responses to questions. She also has developed urinary incontinence. MRI shows dilated ventricles, but no other pathology, and a lumbar puncture reveals a normal opening pressure.
Which one of the following would provide additional evidence of normal pressure hydrocephalus?
Monocular visual loss
Internuclear ophthalmoplegia
Headache
Apraxia of gait
Topic: Hepatic Encephalopathy
Subject: Medicine
A 50-year-old man with a history of hemochromatosis presents to the emergency room vomiting up bright red blood. He had his most recent phlebotomy yesterday. His blood pressure is 110/85 mm Hg, his pulse 115/min; his face is flushed, and he is diaphoretic. During the physical examination splenomegaly and a venous pattern on his chest and abdomen are noted. He seems somewhat drowsy and confused but has no focal neurologic signs.
What is the probable source of this patient's confusion?
Severe anemia
Hepatic encephalopathy
Subarachnoid hemorrhage
Vitamin B12 deficiency
Topic: Mini Mental Status Exam (or MMSE)
Subject: Medicine
In healthy adults, performance on the Folstein Mini-Mental State Examination is affected by which one of the following?
Educational attainment
Socioeconomic status
Gender
Race
Topic: Dementia
Subject: Medicine
Clinical features of multi-infarct dementia may include all of the following, except:
Parkinsonism
Deteriorating course
Evidence of cerebrovascular disease
Focal neurologic signs
Topic: Brain Death
Subject: Medicine
A 57-year-old white male with coronary artery disease suffered a cardiac arrest while jogging 10 days ago. He was resuscitated after 45 minutes but has remained unresponsive and on a ventilator since then.
Which one of the following is required to diagnose brain death in this patient?
Hypothermia
Continuous mechanical ventilation
The absence of spontaneous body movements
Electroencephalographic confirmation
Topic: Status Epilepticus
Subject: Medicine
A 58-year-old male with a history of seizure attacks suffered from a 30min loss of consciousness with repetitive seizures with no recovery of consciousness between attacks. What is the best initial treatment for his condition?
Lorazepam
Phenytoin
Phenobarbital
Carbamazepine
Topic: Trigeminal Neuralgia
Subject: Medicine
A 55-year-old man complains of extremely severe, sharp, shooting pain in his face. He describes the episodes as being like a bolt of electricity that are brought about by touching a specific area, last about 60 seconds, and occur many times during the day. Neurologic examination is completely normal, but it is noted that part of his face is unshaven because he fears to touch that area. Gadoliniumenhanced MRI shows no abnormalities of the trigeminal nerve.
Which of the following is the most appropriate initial treatment?
Anticonvulsants
Aspirin
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs
Vasoconstrictors
Topic: Alzheimer's Disease
Subject: Medicine
An 84-year-old black female is brought to your office by her daughter, who is concerned that the mother has memory problems and is neglecting to pay her monthly bills. The mother also is forgetting appointments and asks the same questions repeatedly. This problem has been steadily worsening over the last 1-2 years. The patient has very little insight into her problems, scores 24 out of a possible 30 points on the Mini-Mental State Examination, and has difficulty with short-term recall and visuospatial tasks. Her physical examination and a thorough laboratory workup are normal. A CT scan of the brain reveals diffuse atrophy. Which one of the following is the most likely etiology for the patients memory problem?
Alzheimers disease
Dementia resulting from depression
Lewy body dementia
Multi-infarct dementia
Topic: Absence Seizures
Subject: Medicine
The treatment of choice for absence seizures is:
Lamotrigine
Ethosuximide
Phenobarbital
Phenytoin
Topic: Benign Positional Vertigo
Subject: Medicine
Which one of the following is characteristic of benign positional vertigo?
A duration of 10-15 minutes
Associated hearing loss and tinnitus
Associated diplopia and facial numbness
Being triggered by turning the head
Topic: Foot Drop
Subject: Medicine
During the physical exam of a patients foot, you notice an inability to dorsiflex. What nerve root(s) is most likely affected?
T12
L1
L2
L4 - L5
Topic: Guillain-Barr� syndrome
Subject: Medicine
Guillain-Barr� syndrome is not associated with which of the following?
Proximal muscle weakness
Areflexia
Infection with C. jejuni
Treatment with corticosteroids
Topic: Essential Tremor
Subject: Medicine
Which one of the following is most likely to be of benefit in patients with essential tremor of the hand?
Isoniazid
Diazepam
Primidone
Clonidine
Topic: Seizure
Subject: Medicine
A 68-year-old man with a history of urolithiasis, suffered from a seizure attack which involved loss of consciousness with tonic and clonic muscular contractions. His tongue fell back into his throat and he choked.
Which of the following medications is contraindicated in this patient's treatment?
Levetiracetam
Phenytoin
Topiramate
Carbamazepine
Topic: Diagnostic Investigations
Subject: Medicine
A 52 year old male with a history of psychosis presents with muscle stiffness and resting tremors, associated with difficulty in balance and initiating movements. What is the best diagnostic method for detection of the above condition?
Serum dopamine levels
Computed tomography scan
Positron emission tomography scan
Magnetic resonance imaging
Topic: Alzheimer's Disease
Subject: Medicine
A 62 year old woman has demonstrated increasing loss of recent memory over a 5 year period, now associated with reduced affect and nominal dysphasia. She dresses neatly and social amenities are preserved. There are no localizing motor or sensory findings.
Which one of the following is the most likely diagnosis?
Cerebral vascular disease
Hydrocephalus
Huntington's disease
Alzheimer's disease
Topic: Subarachnoid Hemorrhage
Subject: Medicine
A 25-year-old male presents 5 hours after the onset of the worst headache of my life. His temperature is 37.0°C (98.6°F), blood pressure 140/90 mm Hg, respiratory rate 20/min, and pulse rate 90 beats/min. The patient is lethargic but oriented; there are no focal neurologic findings, but neck stiffness is present. Unenhanced CT of the head is negative. You elect to perform a lumbar puncture. At this time, which one of the following findings in bloody spinal fluid would indicate a diagnosis of subarachnoid hemorrhage?
Yellow-orange cerebrospinal fluid supernatant
A WBC:RBC ratio of 1/1000
A protein (g/L) to RBC (count/L) of 1/1000
A glucose level below 2.2 mmol/L