Test your knowledge of clinical pharmacy practice, laboratory data interpretation, and related concepts.
Test Your Knowledge
Showing questions 81 - 100 of 315
81. In CLIA-waived POCT, what do 'interferences' refer to?
Interferences (or analytic specificities) are medical conditions, medications, or other substances that might influence test results positively or negatively. For quantitative tests, interference can obscure the limit of detection, whereas with qualitative tests it could cause falsely positive or falsely negative results.
82. What is highlighted as a significant gap in professional pharmacy degree programs regarding CLIA-waived POCT?
Two national surveys of academic pharmacy suggest that education on CLIA-waived POC tests for infectious dis-eases is generally lacking from professional pharmacy degree programs.
83. What is a common cause of a false positive result for amphetamines by immunoassay urine drug screens?
Urine drug screens by immunoassay for amphetamines are subject to cross-reactivity with several sympathomimetic amine-type drugs (e.g., ephedrine and pseudoephedrine and their variants), which can cause a false positive result.
84. What is a major problem identified with the therapeutic drug monitoring process, despite its potential benefits?
The biggest problems with the process continue to be lack of education, communication, and documentation.
85. For drugs typically monitored with Therapeutic Drug Monitoring (TDM), what is the minimum number of half-lives a clinician should wait before obtaining a sample for monitoring purposes to ensure steady state is attained?
This means the clinician should wait three half-lives at a min-imum before obtaining a sample for monitoring purposes.
86. What is a key factor to consider when interpreting a patient's digoxin concentration, as illustrated in the provided case study?
Digoxin concentrations, with maintenance therapy, should be drawn at the trough of the therapeutic interval (just prior to administration of the next dose) or no sooner than six to eight hours after the dose was administered. The timing of the sample significantly impacts interpretation.
87. What term is preferred as a better predictor of response for protease inhibitors (PIs) than trough concentrations alone?
Attention has turned more recently, however, to the use of a new parameter that may be a better predictor of response. The inhibitory quotient (IQ) is the ratio of the patient’s trough plasma concen-tration to the IC50 or IC90.
88. According to NACB guidelines, which of the following is a criterion for a pharmacogenetic test to be clinically useful?
The National Academy of Clinical Biochemistry (NACB) guidelines developed criteria for clinically useful pharmacogenetic tests, including analytical reliability, operational implementation, clinical predictive power (specificity and sensitivity consistent with other diagnostics in use), and compatibility with therapeutic management.
89. Which gene variants account for 85% of reduced function alleles for CYP2C19 in Caucasians and Africans and 99% in Asians?
The most common non-functional alleles are *2 (rs4244285) and *3 (rs4986893), which account for 85% of reduced function alleles in Caucasians and Africans and 99% of reduced function alleles in Asians.
90. What is the preferred cardiac biochemical marker for the evaluation of patients presenting with suspected Acute Coronary Syndrome (ACS)?
Cardiac troponins (cTnI or cTnT) are the preferred cardiac bio-chemical markers for the evaluation of patients presenting with suspected ACS.
91. In a urinalysis using dipsticks, what might a dark yellow or greenish-brown color suggest?
A dark yellow or greenish-brown color in urine generally suggests bilirubin in the urine (bilirubinuria), as most test strips rely on the reaction between bilirubin and a diazotized organic dye to yield a distinct color.
92. What is the Mean Corpuscular Volume (MCV) an estimate of, and what does an abnormally high value often indicate?
The Mean Corpuscular Volume (MCV) is an estimate of the average volume of red blood cells (RBCs). Abnormally large cells have an increased MCV and are called macrocytic, which can be caused by vitamin B12 and folate deficiency.
93. What laboratory test is commonly used to screen for dyslipidemia by measuring Total Cholesterol (TC), High-Density Lipoprotein (HDL), and Triglycerides (TGs)?
Point-of-care testing (POCT) outside the laboratory that are waived from the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amend-ments. These devices enable testing for TC, HDL, and TGs.
94. What is the primary method for diagnosing pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) recommended by the CDC, particularly for respiratory specimens?
Because of their high specificity and the rapid availability of results, the CDC recommends performing Nucleic Acid (NA) amplification tests on respiratory specimens of patients suspected of having pulmonary TB.
95. What generally do pH values below 7.35 represent in arterial blood gas analysis?
Generally speaking, pH values below 7.35 represent acidemia.
96. Which type of bacteria can grow satisfactorily at very low oxygen levels but not in its complete absence?
Microaerophiles are microorganisms that can grow satisfactorily at very low oxygen levels but are unable to grow in its complete absence.
97. What is the purpose of using a 10% solution of potassium hydroxide (KOH) with or without fluorescent calcofluor white (CFW) stain in direct microscopic examination of fungal specimens?
A common approach to wet preparations of specimens for fungi is to use a 10% solution of potassium hydroxide (KOH). The strong alkaline KOH solution digests tissue elements to allow better visualization of the fungi, while the CFW stain binds to chitin and polysaccharides in the fungal cell wall allowing it to appear white under ultraviolet light.
98. What does a 'negative' result in Bronchial Provocation Tests (BPTs) primarily help in?
Negative BPTs are useful in excluding the diagnosis of asthma more than confirming the diagnosis when a test is positive.
99. What is the primary method of diagnosing pulmonary tuberculosis recommended by the CDC for respiratory specimens due to high specificity and rapid results?
Because of their high specificity and the rapid availability of results, the CDC recommends performing Nucleic Acid (NA) amplification tests on respiratory specimens of patients suspected of having pulmonary TB.
100. In the interpretation of drug concentrations, what is the role of protein binding and active metabolites?
Protein binding, active metabolites and other considerations are factors that affect the interpretation of drug concentrations.