Afghanistan Medical Exit Exam key terms

A life-threatening state in which oxygen delivery to tissues is inadequate for their metabolic needs, producing low blood pressure, fast pulse, cool or clammy skin, and declining consciousness. It may result from blood loss, infection, heart failure, or severe allergic reaction.

A dysregulated body-wide response to infection that injures the body's own tissues, shown by fever or low temperature, fast breathing, fast pulse, and confusion. Without prompt antibiotics, fluids, and source control it can progress to septic shock and death.

The rapid sorting of patients by urgency so that limited staff and resources treat the sickest first. Categories are usually assigned by vital signs and chief complaint, and they are reassessed as conditions change.

A 3-to-15 score combining eye opening, verbal response, and best motor response, used to grade level of consciousness after head injury or in any critically ill patient. A score of 8 or less generally signals a need to protect the airway.

The sequence of steps taken to keep a patient's breathing passage open, from positioning and suctioning to inserting airway devices or placing a breathing tube. It is the first priority in any resuscitation because without a patent airway, oxygenation cannot occur.

Air trapped in the pleural space under pressure that collapses a lung and pushes the heart and great vessels aside, causing sudden breathlessness, low blood pressure, and absent breath sounds on one side. It is relieved immediately by needle or tube decompression, before any imaging.

Insertion of a sterile tube through the chest wall into the pleural space to drain air, blood, or pus and allow the lung to re-expand. Correct placement is confirmed clinically and by imaging, and the drainage volume is monitored.

Accumulation of blood in the pleural cavity, usually after chest trauma, producing breathlessness, dullness to percussion, and reduced breath sounds on the affected side. Large or continuing collections require tube drainage and sometimes surgery.

Inflammation of the vermiform appendix, classically causing pain that starts around the navel and migrates to the right lower abdomen, with tenderness, fever, and loss of appetite. Untreated it can perforate and cause peritonitis or an abscess.

Inflammation of the membrane lining the abdominal cavity, causing severe constant abdominal pain, tenderness, guarding, and fever. It often follows a perforated organ or infected fluid and is a surgical emergency requiring antibiotics and often laparotomy.

Pain that is worse when a examining hand is suddenly released from the abdomen than when it presses in. It suggests irritation of the peritoneum and is a warning sign of surgical abdominal disease.

Persistently raised arterial blood pressure, conventionally at or above 140/90 mmHg on repeated measurements. It usually causes no symptoms but damages the heart, brain, kidneys, and eyes over time, so it must be found by screening and treated long term.

A group of disorders in which blood glucose is persistently high because insulin is lacking or not working properly. It causes thirst, frequent urination, weight loss, and long-term damage to nerves, kidneys, eyes, and blood vessels.

Abnormally low blood glucose, typically below 70 mg/dL, causing sweating, trembling, hunger, confusion, and if untreated seizures or coma. It is corrected quickly with oral sugar or intravenous glucose and is a common complication of insulin treatment.

A blood test that reflects average glucose over roughly the previous two to three months by measuring sugar attached to hemoglobin. It is used to diagnose diabetes and to monitor how well treatment is controlling it.

A condition in which the blood carries fewer red cells or less hemoglobin than normal, reducing oxygen delivery. Common causes include iron deficiency, blood loss, chronic infection, and inherited hemoglobin disorders, and it presents with pallor and fatigue.

A panel of laboratory tests measuring red cells, white cells, platelets, hemoglobin, and related indices. It helps identify anemia, infection, and bleeding disorders and is one of the most frequently ordered tests in clinical practice.

An abnormally high white blood cell count in the blood, often a response to infection, inflammation, stress, or steroid use, and sometimes a sign of leukemia. The pattern of which white cell types rise helps suggest the cause.

The organized effort to use antimicrobials only when needed, at the right dose, route, and duration, to cure infection while limiting resistance and side effects. It includes de-escalating broad drugs once culture results are known.

The ability of bacteria and other microbes to survive drugs that once killed them, usually because of overuse and misuse of antibiotics. It makes common infections harder and more expensive to treat and threatens gains in modern medicine.

A chronic bacterial infection spread by airborne droplets, most often affecting the lungs and causing cough lasting weeks, fever, night sweats, and weight loss. Diagnosis relies on sputum testing, and treatment requires several drugs taken for many months without interruption.

A strategy in which a trained observer watches a patient swallow each dose of tuberculosis medicine, often several times weekly. It improves adherence, prevents relapse, and reduces the emergence of drug-resistant strains.

A mosquito-borne infection by Plasmodium parasites that destroys red cells and causes cyclical fever, chills, headache, and sometimes severe complications such as cerebral disease or anemia. Diagnosis is by blood smear or rapid test, and treatment depends on the species and severity.

A bed net impregnated with insecticide that protects sleeping people from night-biting mosquitoes and reduces malaria transmission in a community. High population coverage is more effective than protecting only individuals.

A screening measure calculated as weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared. It classifies adults as underweight, normal, overweight, or obese and helps identify nutritional and cardiovascular risk.

The regular plotting of a child's weight, height, and head size against standard charts to detect faltering growth, malnutrition, or overweight early. It is a core part of child health visits and links directly to feeding advice.

A carefully balanced mixture of salts and glucose in clean water given by mouth to replace fluid lost through diarrhea. Glucose helps the gut absorb sodium and water, and early use prevents most deaths from dehydration in children.

Giving zinc for about ten to fourteen days during childhood diarrhea, which shortens the illness and reduces recurrence in the following months. It is recommended alongside oral rehydration and continued feeding.

A pregnancy disorder, usually after twenty weeks, marked by new high blood pressure plus protein in the urine or other organ disturbance. It can progress to seizures, liver and kidney injury, and fetal growth problems, so close monitoring and timely delivery are essential.

The occurrence of generalized seizures in a pregnant or recently delivered woman with preeclampsia, after other causes of seizure are excluded. It is a life-threatening emergency treated with magnesium sulfate and urgent delivery.

Excessive bleeding from the birth canal after delivery, commonly defined as more than 500 mL after vaginal birth. It is a leading cause of maternal death worldwide and is managed with uterine massage, drugs that contract the uterus, fluids, and blood.

The scheduled health visits during pregnancy that screen for complications, provide preventive treatments, and give advice on nutrition and birth planning. Regular attendance allows problems such as preeclampsia or anemia to be found before they become emergencies.

A patient's voluntary agreement to a test or treatment after receiving understandable information about its purpose, benefits, risks, and alternatives. It respects patient autonomy and must be obtained without coercion, using a trained interpreter when needed.

The professional duty to keep a patient's health information private and share it only with those involved in care or when the law clearly requires disclosure. It builds trust and is a cornerstone of ethical medical practice.

The honest telling of a patient or family when a mistake in care has occurred, including what happened, what is being done to limit harm, and how recurrence will be prevented. It is an ethical duty distinct from legal liability.

A heart rate faster than the normal range for age, commonly above 100 beats per minute in adults. It may be a normal response to fever, pain, or exercise, or a sign of shock, arrhythmia, or other serious illness.

The body's active maintenance of stable internal conditions such as temperature, pH, glucose, and fluid balance despite changes outside the body. It depends on feedback loops involving nerves, hormones, and the kidneys.

How the body handles a drug over time, covering absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion. These processes determine the drug's concentration at its site of action and therefore its dose, dosing interval, and route.