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Organ System Disorders

Respiratory Conditions Practice Questions

20 free Respiratory Conditions practice questions for the USMLE Step 1, each with the correct answer and a detailed explanation. Open any question below, or take the full set as an interactive quiz.

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All Respiratory Conditions questions

20 questions
  1. Q1. A 62-year-old man with a 40-pack-year smoking history presents with chronic productive cough and dyspnea. His FEV1/FVC ratio is reduced. Which pathologic chang…
  2. Q2. A 25-year-old woman presents with wheezing, chest tightness, and cough triggered by exposure to pollen. Which of the following best explains the early phase of…
  3. Q3. A COPD patient has a markedly decreased diffusion capacity (DLCO). Which subtype of COPD is this most consistent with?
  4. Q4. A 7-year-old with asthma has a pulsus paradoxus during an acute exacerbation. What is the mechanism?
  5. Q5. A 58-year-old man with emphysema has hyperinflated lungs. Which physiologic change explains this?
  6. Q6. A patient with severe asthma has normal DLCO. This finding supports the diagnosis because:
  7. Q7. A patient develops ARDS after sepsis. Which physiologic abnormality defines ARDS?
  8. Q8. A COPD patient retains CO₂ chronically. Which compensation is expected?
  9. Q9. A 34-year-old woman with asthma shows a reversible drop in FEV1 after methacholine challenge. Methacholine acts by:
  10. Q10. A 70-year-old smoker presents with dyspnea and pursed-lip breathing. Which mechanism improves his expiratory airflow?
  11. Q11. A patient with chronic bronchitis has secondary polycythemia. What is the cause?
  12. Q12. A patient with acute asthma shows hyperinflated lungs on x-ray. What mechanism causes this?
  13. Q13. A patient develops ARDS after inhaling toxic fumes. Which microscopic finding is characteristic?
  14. Q14. Which cytokine plays a major role in neutrophil recruitment in ARDS?
  15. Q15. A patient with longstanding emphysema has a barrel-shaped chest. Which physiologic change contributes to this?
  16. Q16. A patient with asthma has thickened basement membranes and smooth muscle hypertrophy on biopsy. What does this indicate?
  17. Q17. A patient with COPD has increased anterior–posterior chest diameter. Which pulmonary function test is most likely reduced?
  18. Q18. A patient with severe ARDS requires mechanical ventilation. Which strategy reduces ventilator-associated lung injury?
  19. Q19. A patient with asthma develops elevated eosinophils. Which protein is released by eosinophils that damages epithelial cells?
  20. Q20. A COPD patient has chronic hypercapnia. What is the main drive for respiration in such cases?