AAPC-COC Certified Outpatient Coder - Set 1 - Part 3

Correct Answer: Teniae coli

The longitudinal muscle of the large intestine is incomplete and limited to three distinct bands called teniae coli. These bands run the entire length of the colon and, on contraction, create the haustra. Option a is incorrect because plicae circulares increase absorptive surface area in the small intestine, so they belong to a different organ and function. Option c is incorrect because haustra are the pouches created along the colon when the longitudinal muscle bands contract, not the muscle bands themselves. Option d is incorrect because epiploic appendages are pieces of fat-filled connective tissue attached to the outer surface of the colon, not muscle.

Correct Answer: Passageways for vessels and nerves

Surface markings such as holes, depressions, smooth facets, lines and projections usually represent passageways for vessels and nerves, points of articulation with other bones, or points of attachment for tendons and ligaments. Option a is incorrect because hematopoiesis mostly takes place in the red marrow within the bones, so it is not a role of surface markings. Option b is incorrect because calcium storage and release occur in the intercellular bone matrix, not through holes or depressions on the bone surface. Option c is incorrect because this is the work of osteoclasts, a cell type involved in bone remodeling, rather than a function of surface features.

Correct Answer: Thyroid-stimulating hormone

Thyroid-stimulating hormone, or thyrotropin, causes thyroid glandular cells to secrete thyroid hormone. When it is hypersecreted, the thyroid gland enlarges and secretes too much thyroid hormone, matching the situation described. Option a is incorrect because they react with receptor sites in the ovaries and testes to regulate development, growth, and function of those organs, not the thyroid. Option b is incorrect because it acts on receptor sites in the adrenal cortex to stimulate cortical hormones, particularly cortisol, and does not act on the thyroid. Option d is incorrect because it promotes development of glandular tissue in the female breast and stimulates milk production after birth, so it has no role in thyroid secretion.

Correct Answer: Semilunar valve

The semilunar valve is a heart valve at the base of a large vessel leaving a ventricle, keeping blood flowing in one direction. It is not part of the conduction system, which consists of nodes, bundles and myofibers. Option a is incorrect because it is listed among the other parts of the conduction system that coordinate contraction and relaxation of the heart chambers. Option b is incorrect because it is the first part of the conduction system and is called the pacemaker because it establishes the basic rhythm of the heartbeat. Option c is incorrect because they are named as a component of the conduction system, working alongside the nodes, bundle and bundle branches.

Correct Answer: red bone marrow

Red bone marrow is the soft tissue inside bones where the formed elements of the blood are produced, including red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. It is located mainly in flat bones such as the sternum, skull, and pelvis. Option a is incorrect because white blood cells are themselves a formed element; they provide immune defense and break down old RBCs through phagocytosis rather than producing blood cells. Option b is incorrect because the kidneys produce erythropoietin, a hormone that stimulates red blood cell production, but they are not where the blood cells themselves are formed. Option d is incorrect because a platelet plug is the second step of hemostasis, formed to help stop bleeding after vessel damage, and has no role in blood cell formation.

Correct Answer: Efferent lymphatic vessel

An efferent lymphatic vessel leaves the node at the hilum, an indented region, and carries lymph away. Lymph first moves through the lymph sinuses and then enters this vessel. Option a is incorrect because the capsule surrounds the typical lymph node as an outer covering and is not a vessel that transports lymph. Option b is incorrect because lymph sinuses are the spaces separating the lymph nodules, through which lymph moves before it reaches the efferent vessel. Option c is incorrect because afferent vessels carry lymph into the node, entering at different parts of its periphery on the convex side, not at the hilum.

Correct Answer: Peristalsis

Peristalsis is the name for the rhythmic waves of contractions that propel food particles through the digestive tract, where mechanical and chemical digestion take place. It falls under the activity called movements. Option a is incorrect because hydrolysis is the chemical process using water and digestive enzymes to break down complex molecules, so it does not propel anything. Option b is incorrect because mastication is chewing in the mouth, a form of mechanical digestion that breaks food into smaller particles rather than moving it onward. Option d is incorrect because deglutition is swallowing, the movement of food from the mouth into the pharynx and then the esophagus, not propulsion along the tract.

Correct Answer: Renal pelvis

The renal pelvis is the large cavity in the renal sinus that collects urine as it is produced. It receives urine from the major calyces and is continuous with the ureter. Option a is incorrect because this double-layered epithelial cup surrounds the glomerulus within the renal corpuscle of a nephron, so it sits at the start of filtration. Option c is incorrect because it is the tough, fibrous connective tissue that envelops each kidney and supports the soft tissue inside, not a urine-collecting cavity. Option d is incorrect because the medulla, made of renal pyramids with tubular structures and blood vessels, is functional parenchyma tissue; urine drains from its papillae into calyces.

Correct Answer: Luteal phase

The luteal phase belongs to the ovarian cycle, where the corpus luteum develops and regresses. The uterine cycle consists of the menstrual, proliferative, and secretory phases, which run simultaneously with the ovarian cycle. Option a is incorrect because it opens the uterine cycle, beginning with menstruation, so it is a genuine uterine phase. Option b is incorrect because repair of the endometrium happens here, which places it squarely within the uterine cycle. Option d is incorrect because this phase closes the uterine cycle, when glands and blood vessels grow.

Correct Answer: Audiometer

An audiometer is an electric instrument for testing hearing, used in audiometry. Vision screening relies on the Snellen chart, a near vision chart, and Ishihara plates, so the audiometer is the odd one out. Option a is incorrect because it is the standard screening tool for distant vision, with the patient standing 20 feet from the chart and reading letters. Option b is incorrect because it is a prepared card held 14 inches from the eyes to assess near vision, so it belongs among screening tools. Option c is incorrect because these colored dotted plates show a number or path and are used to assess color vision, which makes them a genuine screening tool.