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Cindy Fairis

Cindy Fairis is brought to your office by her mother because of a cough. She used to cough just in the morning, but in the last two weeks she has started to cough all day long and be very tired. Lately she has started coughing up greenish-grey sputum. When Cindy was 2 months old, she was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. She is 11 now.

Question 1 - Single Best Answer

Is this scenario unusual for a child with cystic fibrosis?   Bugs Database

yes
no

Question 2 - Single Best Answer

The cough is most likely the direct result of?   Bugs Database

bacterial infection
viral infection
no infection, its just the nature of the thick mucous produced by individuals with cystic fibrosis

Question 3 - Single Best Answer

What bacteria are most likely to be infecting this child?   Bugs Database

E. coli or Haemophilus influenzae
Haemophilus influenzae or Staphylococcus aureus
E. coli or Streptococcus pyogenes
Staphylococcus aureus or Pseudomonas aeruginosa
Pseudomonas aeruginosa or Moraxella catarrhalis

Question 4 - Single Best Answer

What type of a bacterium is Pseudomonas?   Bugs Database

Gram positive coccus
Gram positive rod
Gram negative coccus
Gram negative rod
spirochete

Question 5 - Single Best Answer

Which of the following might have led to Cindy's diagnosis of cystic fibrosis (c.f.) at two months of age?   Bugs Database

offensive, greasy stools and salty taste when kissed
sterility in a male or delayed puberty
colonization with Pseudomonas aeruginosa
meconium ileus
all of the above

Question 6 - Single Best Answer

What is the underlying defect in cystic fibrosis?   Bugs Database

abnormal chloride channel
complement deficiency
IgA deficiency
pancreatic insufficiency
ciliostasis and immobile spermatozoa

Question 7 - Single Best Answer

How is pseudomonas infection/carriage determined?   Bugs Database

anaerobic growth on blood agar
aerobic growth on blood or MacConkey agar
special Pseudomonagar
serum antibody to exotoxin A
growth in human macrophages

When Cindy's sputum was streaked on blood agar and incubated aerobically, large colonies with a green pigmentation and a grape-like odor were isolated.

Question 8 - Single Best Answer

The identity of the bacterium isolated is?   Bugs Database

Staphylococcus aureus
Haemophilus influenzae
Pseudomonas aeruginosa
E. coli
none of the above

Question 9 - Single Best Answer

What confirmatory test could be done?   Bugs Database

catalase
coagulase
oxidase
A disk
P disk

Question 10 - Single Best Answer

What is unusual about the metabolism of Pseudomonas?   Bugs Database

it has no Krebs cycle enzymes
it cannot undergo fermentation
it has RNA as its genetic material
it has an elementary body and a reticulate body
it is an energy parasite so is obligately intracellular

You decide to treat Cindy with an aminoglycoside plus the newest of the cephalosporins.

Question 11 - Single Best Answer

The drugs should be administered?   Bugs Database

in smaller than normal doses
in higher than normal doses
in normal doses

Question 12 - Single Best Answer

Will Cindy ever be free of the Pseudomonas that is causing her problem?   Bugs Database

yes, the antibiotics will take care of the problem
no, she will be colonized for life

Question 13 - Single Best Answer

Besides cystic fibrosis patients, what other population is especially susceptible to Pseudomonas infections?   Bugs Database

sickle cell anemics
veterinarians
hospitalized patients
gardeners
bridge players

Question 14 - Single Best Answer

What is one of the most common sites of infection by Pseudomonas aeruginosa in patients without cystic fibrosis?   Bugs Database

burns
genitals
deep puncture wounds
mouth
heart

Question 15 - Single Best Answer

In hospitals, what is the usual reservoir of Pseudomonas?   Bugs Database

sinks
flower pots
mops
respiratory therapy machines
all of the above

   

 Location: http://medinfo.ufl.edu/year2/mmid/a40aq.html
  Updated: October 6, 2005

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