CMA (AAMA) Practice Test

CMA (AAMA) Patient Intake & Discharge Practice Questions

Patient Intake & Discharge makes up 7 of every 50 questions on a Tigertest CMA (AAMA) practice test. Here are 10 of the 28 questions on it, each with the answer and the reason.

Updated 2026-11-10 by the Tigertest team. Based on the AAMA Content Outline for the CMA (AAMA) Certification Exam. Original questions; 50 per test, weighted like the real exam. Not affiliated with the AAMA.

1. 1. While taking a manual blood pressure, the medical assistant hears the first clear tapping sound as the cuff deflates. What does this sound mark?

   • A.The mean arterial pressure
   • B.The systolic pressure
   • C.The diastolic pressure
   • D.The pulse pressure

   Answer: B. The first clear Korotkoff sound (phase I) marks the systolic pressure. The point where the sounds disappear (phase V) is recorded as the diastolic pressure in adults.

2. 2. A patient's blood pressure is 142/88 mm Hg. What is the pulse pressure?

   • A.230 mm Hg
   • B.142 mm Hg
   • C.88 mm Hg
   • D.54 mm Hg

   Answer: D. Pulse pressure is systolic minus diastolic: 142 - 88 = 54 mm Hg. Adding the two numbers gives 230, which has no clinical meaning.

3. 3. A provider orders a blood pressure taken on the thigh because both arms are in casts. Over which artery is the stethoscope placed?

   • A.Popliteal artery
   • B.Posterior tibial artery
   • C.Femoral artery
   • D.Dorsalis pedis artery

   Answer: A. A thigh pressure uses a large cuff on the thigh with the stethoscope over the popliteal artery behind the knee. Thigh readings usually run higher than arm readings.

4. 4. Two staff count a patient's pulse at the same time: 96 at the apex and 82 at the radial artery. What is the pulse deficit?

   • A.178 beats per minute
   • B.7 beats per minute
   • C.14 beats per minute
   • D.82 beats per minute

   Answer: C. Pulse deficit is apical minus radial: 96 - 82 = 14. A deficit means some heartbeats are too weak to reach the wrist and should be reported.

5. 5. An older patient's breathing cycles from deep, rapid breaths to shallow breaths and then short pauses with no breathing. How is this pattern documented?

   • A.Tachypnea
   • B.Hyperventilation
   • C.Cheyne-Stokes respirations
   • D.Kussmaul respirations

   Answer: C. Cheyne-Stokes breathing waxes and wanes with periods of apnea and is seen in heart failure and near death. Kussmaul breathing is steadily deep and rapid, as in ketoacidosis.

6. 6. How is the length of a 9-month-old infant measured at a well-child visit?

   • A.Lying flat on a measuring board
   • B.Held upright on a parent's lap
   • C.Estimated from the last visit
   • D.Standing straight against a wall chart

   Answer: A. Children under about 2 years are measured recumbent, crown to heel, with the legs gently straightened. Standing height is used once the child can stand steadily.

7. 7. At a well-baby visit, where is the tape measure placed to measure head circumference?

   • A.Below the ears at the neck
   • B.Across the top of the head
   • C.Around the jaw and the crown of the head
   • D.Above the eyebrows and ears

   Answer: D. Head circumference is taken around the widest part of the head: just above the eyebrows and ears in front and over the most prominent part of the back of the head.

8. 8. A 3-year-old's weight plots at the 75th percentile on the growth chart. What does this mean?

   • A.Overweight for her height
   • B.Heavier than 75% of peers
   • C.Lighter than 75% of peers
   • D.75% of an ideal weight

   Answer: B. A percentile compares the child with children of the same age and sex: at the 75th, the child weighs more than 75 of every 100. Trends over time matter more than one plot.

9. 9. A surgical report lists a tracheotomy. What does the suffix "-otomy" mean?

   • A.Surgical repair
   • B.Cutting into
   • C.Surgical removal
   • D.Making a permanent opening

   Answer: B. "-otomy" means incision into. "-ectomy" is removal, "-ostomy" creates an opening to the outside, and "-plasty" is surgical repair.

10. 10. A patient's problem list includes nephrolithiasis. What is this condition?

    • A.Kidney inflammation
    • B.Bladder infection
    • C.Gallstones
    • D.Kidney stones

    Answer: D. "Nephr/o" means kidney and "lith" means stone. Gallstones are cholelithiasis; kidney inflammation is nephritis.