A 58-year-old woman comes to the clinic for evaluation of a ...

[pepyto]

A 58-year-old woman comes to the clinic for evaluation of a sharp, intermittent, severe, stabbing facial pain that she describes as, like an electric shock.
 
  The pain occurs only on one side of her face; it seems to be triggered when she chews, brushes her teeth, or sometimes when she merely touches her face. There is no numbness associated with the pain. What is most likely causing her pain?
  A)
  Postherpetic neuralgia
  B)
  Migraine headache
  C)
  Complex regional pain syndrome
  D)
  Trigeminal neuralgia

Question 2

A 9-year-old girl has a diffuse collection of symptoms that are indicative of deficits in endocrine and autonomic nervous system control.
 
  She also suffers from persistent fluid and electrolyte imbalances. The nurse knows which of the following aspects of the nervous system listed below would her health care providers focus their diagnostic efforts on?
  A)
  Her afferent and efferent cranial nerve function
  B)
  Possible damage to her pons and medulla
  C)
  Impaired function of her hypothalamus
  D)
  Potential damage to the girl's cerebellum

[xMRAZ]

Answer to Question 1

Ans:
D

Feedback:

Her symptoms are characteristic of trigeminal neuralgia, caused by damage to the fifth cranial nerve, which carries impulses of touch, pain, pressure, and temperature to the brain from the face and jaw.

Answer to Question 2

Ans:
C

Feedback:

The hypothalamus plays a central role in the maintenance of fluid and electrolyte balance and in the maintenance of endocrine control. Various cranial nerves, the hindbrain, and the cerebellum would be less likely to be implicated.

[pepyto]

Gracias!

[Joy Chen]

TYSM