A 50-Year-Old Man with a Long History of Alcohol Use

question 244

Multiple Choice

A 50-year-old man with a long history of alcohol use disorder is admitted to the hospital with difficulty breathing.  Blood pressure is 90/40 mm Hg, pulse is 114/min, respirations are 22/min, and pulse oximetry is 92% on room air.  Physical examination shows bilateral basal crackles, increased jugular venous pressure, hepatomegaly, ascites, and peripheral pitting edema.  Chest x-ray demonstrates cardiomegaly.  Scattered ecchymoses are present across each extremity.  Laboratory results are as follows: The patient is given intramuscular vitamin K.  Two days later, his laboratory results are unchanged.  Which of the following is the most likely cause of this patient's laboratory abnormality?

• A)Dietary vitamin K deficiency
• B)Factor VII deficiency
• C)Factor VIII deficiency
• D)Intrinsic platelet dysfunction
• E)Von Willebrand factor deficiency

---

Definitions:

ANOVA

Stands for Analysis of Variance, a statistical method used to compare the means of three or more samples.

Degrees of Freedom

The amount of separate values or magnitudes that a statistical distribution can possess.

Level of Significance

The probability of rejecting the null hypothesis in a statistical test when it is actually true; a measure of statistical significance.

Sum of Squares

A statistical technique used to describe the total variation in a dataset.