OVERVIEW
This page is dedicated to organizing various examples of standardized exam questions whose answer is a peptic ulcer. While this may seem a odd practice, it is useful to see multiple examples of how peptic ulcer will be characterized on standardized exams (namely the boards and the shelf exams). This page is not meant to be used as a tradition question bank (as all of the answers will be the same), however seeing the classic “test” characterization for a disease is quite valuable.
QUESTION EXAMPLES
Question # 1
A 38 year old male comes to the hospital because he has been experiencing stomach cramps and diarrhea for the past 3 days. He has vomited blood twice since he began noticing these symptoms. He explains that he has been taking ibuprofen for pain since he strained his back playing basketball 6 weeks ago. When being examined he appears to be pale. His temperature is 98.4°F, push is 125/min, respirations are 23/min, and blood pressure is 110/65 mm Hg. The physical exam is unremarkable. The patient passes a stool that is dark and tarry, and a guiacc test is positive for occult blood. What is the likely cause of this patient’s symptoms?
Explanation: bloody vomit + abdominal pain + NSAID usage + bloody stools = peptic ulcer
Page Updated: 01.22.2017