RD Exam Enteral & Parenteral Nutrition Practice Questions
Enteral & Parenteral Nutrition makes up 4 of every 50 questions on a Tigertest RD Exam practice test. Here are 10 of the 16 questions on it, each with the answer and the reason.
Updated by the Tigertest team. Based on the CDR Registration Examination for Dietitians test specifications. Original questions; 50 per test, weighted like the real exam. Not affiliated with the Commission on Dietetic Registration.
1. A patient receives a 1.2 kcal/mL formula at 65 mL/h for 24 hours. How many kilocalories does this provide?
- A.1,248 kcal
- B.1,872 kcal
- C.1,560 kcal
- D.1,404 kcal
Answer: B. Volume is 65 x 24 = 1,560 mL, and 1,560 x 1.2 = 1,872 kcal. Stopping at the volume gives 1,560, and running only 18 or 16 hours gives 1,404 or 1,248.
2. A patient needs 1,800 kcal a day from a 1.5 kcal/mL formula given in 5 equal bolus feedings. How much is each feeding?
- A.300 mL
- B.360 mL
- C.200 mL
- D.240 mL
Answer: D. Total volume = 1,800 / 1.5 = 1,200 mL a day, and 1,200 / 5 = 240 mL per feeding. Dividing the kilocalories by 5 instead of the volume gives 360.
3. A PN solution has 280 g of dextrose a day. How many kilocalories does the dextrose provide?
- A.952 kcal
- B.2,520 kcal
- C.1,120 kcal
- D.1,148 kcal
Answer: A. IV dextrose monohydrate gives 3.4 kcal/g: 280 x 3.4 = 952 kcal. Using 4 kcal/g, the value for dietary carbohydrate, gives 1,120, and using 9 kcal/g, the value for fat, gives 2,520.
4. A patient receives 250 mL of 20% IV lipid emulsion. How many kilocalories is that?
- A.275 kcal
- B.725 kcal
- C.500 kcal
- D.450 kcal
Answer: C. A 20% lipid emulsion provides about 2.0 kcal/mL (fat plus the glycerol and phospholipid), so 250 x 2 = 500 kcal. Counting only 50 g of fat at 9 kcal/g gives 450; a 10% emulsion gives about 1.1 kcal/mL.
5. A 70 kg patient receives 350 g of dextrose over 24 hours. What is the glucose infusion rate?
- A.About 2.4 mg/kg/min
- B.About 4.9 mg/kg/min
- C.About 3.5 mg/kg/min
- D.About 5.0 mg/kg/min
Answer: C. GIR = mg of dextrose / kg / minutes = 350,000 / 70 / 1,440 = 3.47 mg/kg/min, within the usual adult limit of about 4 to 5. Dividing by 1,000 instead of 1,440 minutes gives 5.0.
6. A patient gets 1,500 mL of a formula that is 84% free water and needs 2,100 mL of fluid a day. About how much extra water should be given as flushes?
- A.840 mL
- B.1,260 mL
- C.300 mL
- D.600 mL
Answer: A. Free water from formula = 1,500 x 0.84 = 1,260 mL, so 2,100 - 1,260 = 840 mL more is needed. Counting the whole formula volume as water gives only 600 mL.
7. A patient will need tube feeding for about 3 months after a stroke. Which access is usually preferred?
- A.Nasojejunal tube
- B.Nasogastric tube
- C.Orogastric tube
- D.Percutaneous gastrostomy
Answer: D. Nasal tubes suit short-term feeding (about 4 to 6 weeks). For longer use, a gastrostomy such as a PEG is more comfortable and less likely to be dislodged.
8. A tube-fed patient keeps vomiting and has a history of aspiration. Which change is most appropriate?
- A.Change to parenteral feeding
- B.Switch to post-pyloric feeding
- C.Lower the head of the bed flat
- D.Give larger bolus feedings
Answer: B. Feeding beyond the pylorus lowers aspiration risk in patients with gastric intolerance. Keeping the head of the bed raised 30 to 45 degrees also helps; PN is reserved for a gut that cannot be used.
9. A tube-fed patient with severe malabsorption does not tolerate a standard formula. Which formula type is often tried next?
- A.Concentrated 2.0 kcal/mL
- B.Peptide-based formula
- C.Fiber-rich blenderized
- D.High-fat ketogenic
Answer: B. Peptide-based (hydrolyzed) formulas contain small peptides and often MCT oil, which need less digestion and may be better absorbed. A blenderized or very high-fat formula needs full digestive function.
10. A tube-fed patient develops diarrhea. What should be reviewed first?
- A.Stop all tube feeding for 48 h
- B.Dilute the formula by half
- C.Switch straight to PN feeding
- D.Medicines such as sorbitol syrups
Answer: D. Diarrhea in tube-fed patients is most often caused by medications (sorbitol-containing liquids, antibiotics, laxatives) or infection such as C. difficile rather than the formula. Diluting formula is not advised.
Practice all 16 enteral & parenteral nutrition questions, and the rest of the 200-question bank, in the free RD Exam training sets. Questions you miss come back until you have mastered them.
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