About the Hemodynamics question bank
Hemodynamic questions ask you to reason from numbers and tracings to a diagnosis. Given a right atrial pressure, a wedge, and a cardiac output, what is wrong with this patient? Given a tracing with a giant v wave, what valve is failing? The exam rewards the person who has internalised the normal values and can spot the pattern that breaks them.
This bank drills the full chain: measuring pressures correctly, recognising normal and abnormal waveforms, calculating the derived values, and translating all of it into a clinical picture. Work it alongside the interactive waveform atlas — seeing a tracing move is worth more than reading about it.
What this bank covers
- Normal chamber pressures from RA through the aorta
- The a, c, and v waves and the x and y descents
- Cardiac output by Fick and by thermodilution — and when each one lies
- Vascular resistance (SVR and PVR) and how to interpret it
- Valve gradients, valve area, and the Gorlin and Hakki equations
- Shunt detection, oxygen saturation runs, and Qp:Qs
- Tamponade, constriction, and restriction — and how to tell them apart
- Wedge pressure: how to obtain it, validate it, and misread it
How to use it
- Memorise the normal values as ranges, not single numbers — the exam gives you values near the boundary on purpose.
- For every abnormal waveform, learn the one-line reason it looks that way. A giant v wave is regurgitant flow into a non-compliant atrium; that sentence answers a dozen questions.
- Open the interactive pressure waveform atlas in a second window while you work this bank.
Frequently asked questions
What are the normal hemodynamic values I must know cold?
RA 2–6 mmHg; RV 15–30/2–8; PA 15–30/8–15; PCWP 4–12; LV 100–140/3–12; aorta 100–140/60–90. Cardiac index 2.5–4.0 L/min/m². Know these as ranges and you can answer a large fraction of the domain.
Fick or thermodilution — which does the exam prefer?
Both, and it will test when each fails. Thermodilution is unreliable in low-output states, tricuspid regurgitation, and intracardiac shunts; Fick depends on an accurate oxygen consumption, which is usually assumed rather than measured.
How do I tell constriction from restriction?
Constriction shows discordance between LV and RV pressures with respiration and equalised diastolic pressures; restriction shows concordance and a higher LV than RV end-diastolic pressure. The interactive atlas below animates both side by side.