Circulatory System - Competency-Based Question Bank (with Answers)

Section A: Case-Based Questions

Case Study 1: Patient with breathlessness, fatigue, and low hemoglobin.

1. Identify the condition.
   • Answer: Anaemia.
2. Function of hemoglobin.
   • Answer: To bind with Oxygen (forming Oxyhaemoglobin) and transport it to the tissues.
3. Designing: Diet plan.
   • Answer: Spinach, Jaggery, Liver/Red Meat, Pomegranate.
4. Analysis: Why fatigue?
   • Answer: Less Hb -> Less Oxygen transport -> Less Aerobic Respiration -> Less ATP (energy) production.
5. RBC adaptation.
   • Answer: Biconcave shape increases surface area for gas exchange and allows flexibility to pass through capillaries. Lack of nucleus/mitochondria provides more space for Hb.

Case Study 2: Blood pressure 150/95 mmHg. 6. Normal range.

• Answer: 120/80 mmHg.

7. Systolic vs Diastolic.
   • Answer: Systolic: Pressure when ventricles contract. Diastolic: Pressure when ventricles relax.
8. Creating: Lifestyle changes.
   • Answer: Reduce salt intake, regular exercise, weight management, stress reduction.
9. Critical Thinking: Why "silent killer"?
   • Answer: Often has no noticeable symptoms until it causes severe damage like a stroke or heart attack.
10. Elasticity of arteries.
    • Answer: Allows arteries to expand during systole and recoil during diastole, smoothing out the blood flow and maintaining pressure.

Section B: Assertion-Reasoning Questions

Directions: (a) Both A/R true, R explains A; (b) Both true, R doesn't explain A; (c) A true, R false; (d) A false, R true.

11. Assertion (A): Left ventricle has a thicker wall. Reason (R): It pumps blood to the entire body.
    • Answer: (a) Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation.
12. Assertion (A): Arteries have valves. Reason (R): Blood flows under high pressure.
    • Answer: (d) A is false but R is true. (Veins have valves, not arteries).
13. Assertion (A): SA node is the pacemaker. Reason (R): It generates the electrical impulse.
    • Answer: (a) Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation.
14. Assertion (A): O blood group is universal donor. Reason (R): It has no antigens on RBCs.
    • Answer: (a) Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation.
15. Assertion (A): Lymph is colourless. Reason (R): It lacks RBCs and Hb.
    • Answer: (a) Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation.

Section C: Creating and Designing (Application & Analysis)

16. Designing: Path of blood flowchart.
    • Answer: Vena Cava -> Right Atrium -> Right Ventricle -> Pulmonary Artery -> Lungs -> Pulmonary Veins -> Left Atrium -> Left Ventricle -> Aorta.
17. Creating: Phagocyte poster.
    • Answer: "Wanted: Phagocyte. Alias: The Eater. Method: Squeezing through walls (Diapedesis) and swallowing enemies (Phagocytosis)."
18. Analysis: Artery vs Vein.
    • Answer: Arteries: Thick muscular walls, narrow lumen, no valves. Veins: Thin walls, wide lumen, have valves. Veins collapse because they have less muscle and lower internal pressure.
19. Designing: Blood compatibility table.
    • Answer: [A: receives A/O, B: receives B/O, AB: receives All, O: receives O].
20. Visualisation: Heart diagram labels.
    • Answer: [Description of heart interior with 4 chambers and valves].
21. Application: Heart rate in exercise.
    • Answer: To supply more Oxygen and Glucose to the working muscles and remove CO2/Heat faster.
22. Creating: Double Circulation metaphor.
    • Answer: Like a mail truck that goes to the sorting center (Lungs) and then returns to the main hub (Heart) before delivering to the houses (Body).
23. Analysis: Hepatic Portal Vein.
    • Answer: To transport absorbed nutrients (Glucose/Amino acids) from the intestine directly to the liver for processing/detoxification before they enter systemic circulation.
24. Designing: First-aid for bleeding.
    • Answer: Apply firm pressure. This allows platelets to clump and the clotting cascade to form a fibrin mesh.
25. Creating: Platelet autobiography.
    • Answer: "I am small but mighty. When there's a leak, I'm the first responder to plug the hole."

Section D: Competency & Critical Thinking

26. Double Circulation.
    • Answer: Blood passes through the heart twice for one complete body circuit (Pulmonary and Systemic). Essential for high metabolic rates.
27. Scenario: Hole in septum.
    • Answer: Mixing of oxygenated and deoxygenated blood, reducing the efficiency of Oxygen delivery to tissues.
28. Critical Thinking: Higher RBC in mountains.
    • Answer: To compensate for lower Oxygen levels in the atmosphere (Acclimatization).
29. Application: Erythroblastosis fetalis.
    • Answer: Rh- mother with Rh+ fetus. Mother develops anti-Rh antibodies which can attack the RBCs of a second Rh+ fetus.
30. Serum vs Plasma.
    • Answer: Plasma: Liquid part of blood with clotting factors. Serum: Plasma minus clotting factors.
31. Diagram Based: ECG waves.
    • Answer: P-wave: Atrial depolarization (contraction). QRS complex: Ventricular depolarization (contraction).
32. Lymphatic System function.
    • Answer: Drainage of excess tissue fluid, absorption of fats, and immune defense.
33. Analysis: Spleen graveyard.
    • Answer: Old and worn-out RBCs are broken down here by macrophages.
34. Competency: Clotting mechanism.
    • Answer: Thromboplastin + Calcium -> Prothrombin to Thrombin -> Fibrinogen to Fibrin (insoluble threads).
35. Case: Orthostatic hypotension.
    • Answer: Gravity pulls blood to legs; the heart must beat faster/vessels constrict to maintain brain blood flow.
36. Creating: Caffeine hypothesis.
    • Answer: Caffeine stimulates the nervous system/adrenal glands, increasing heart rate.
37. Designing: Open vs Closed system aid.
    • Answer: Open: Blood bathes organs directly. Closed: Blood stays inside vessels.
38. Application: Atherosclerosis and heart attack.
    • Answer: Plaque narrows coronary arteries, reducing blood/oxygen flow to heart muscle.
39. Critical Thinking: Capillary thickness.
    • Answer: One-cell thick wall allows for rapid diffusion of gases and nutrients.
40. Analysis: Lub-Dub sounds.
    • Answer: 'Lub': Closure of Atrio-ventricular valves. 'Dub': Closure of Semi-lunar valves.

Section E: Advanced Competency

41. Scenario: Heart beat after nerves cut.
    • Answer: Yes, it will beat because the impulse is generated within the heart muscle (SA Node).
42. Designing: Stethoscope model.
    • Answer: Funnel picks up vibrations; tube transmits them directly to the ear.
43. Application: Tissue Fluid formation.
    • Answer: High hydrostatic pressure at the arterial end of capillaries forces fluid out into the spaces between cells.
44. Creating: Lymph vs Blood table.
    • Answer: [Blood: RBCs, high protein, high pressure. Lymph: No RBCs, low protein, low pressure].
45. Case Study: Thrombocytopenia.
    • Answer: Internal or excessive external bleeding due to failure of clotting.
46. Calcium and Vitamin K.
    • Answer: Calcium is a cofactor for clotting enzymes; Vitamin K is needed by the liver to synthesize prothrombin.
47. Critical Thinking: Elastic artery wall.
    • Answer: To absorb the pressure surge from the heart and maintain a steady flow during diastole.
48. Analysis: Pulmonary Artery vs Vein.
    • Answer: Artery carries deoxygenated blood to lungs; Vein carries oxygenated blood to heart.
49. Designing: BP variation graph.
    • Answer: Highest in Aorta/Arteries, drops significantly in Arterioles/Capillaries, lowest in Veins.
50. Creating: Nanobot cleaner.
    • Answer: Would use chemical sensors to detect cholesterol/calcium deposits.