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These 10 free PTTC questions are organized by exam domain, so you can see how each part of the Physical Therapy Technician Certification (PTTC) blueprint is tested. Reveal the answer and explanation under each question.
During a slow, controlled lowering from standing into a chair, the knees bend. Which muscle action primarily prevents the body from dropping onto the seat?
Correct answer: C - Eccentric contraction of the quadriceps
An outpatient who feels well has a blood pressure reading of 158/94 mmHg after five quiet seated minutes. The arm circumference exceeds the range printed on the cuff. There is no chest pain, breathlessness, or new neurologic symptom. How should this reading be handled first?
Correct answer: B - Repeat the measurement with a correctly sized cuff and the arm supported at heart level.
An adult collapses in the therapy gym and is unresponsive. A colleague activates the emergency response system and goes to retrieve the AED. The technician, trained in healthcare-provider basic life support, observes occasional gasps and cannot definitely feel a carotid pulse within 10 seconds. Which intervention should begin immediately?
Correct answer: A - Chest compressions at a rate of 100-120 per minute
An outpatient Medicare Part B encounter log lists 27 minutes of one-on-one gait training by the physical therapist, 9 minutes of one-on-one therapeutic exercise by that therapist, and 24 minutes of exercise practice with an aide while the therapist treats another patient. These are the only services recorded. How many total 15-minute timed therapy units are supported?
Correct answer: B - 2 units
A physical therapist at another clinic is taking over a patient's postoperative rehabilitation and requests the operative report and current mobility precautions. The technician has verified the therapist's identity and treatment role, and sending routine treatment records is an authorized part of the technician's job. Which statement correctly applies HIPAA to this request?
Correct answer: C - The records may be sent through the clinic's approved secure channel without a separate patient authorization.
For the CDC STEADI Timed Up and Go test, a 77-year-old rises from an armchair, walks 3 meters at a normal pace, turns, returns, and sits. The time is 16.4 seconds. The patient uses the usual cane; the technician stays nearby without providing physical assistance. What does this result support?
Correct answer: D - A positive screen for increased fall risk, without identifying the cause
At the start of a therapist-supervised walking session, a patient pulls on both handles of a standard walker to rise from an armchair. The walker tilts toward the patient, who remains seated. What should the technician reinforce before the next attempt?
Correct answer: D - Push from the armrests, then take the walker handles once upright.
As the technician prepares a prescribed cold pack for the wrist, the patient says, "When I handle frozen food, my fingers turn white, then blue, and ache until they warm up." The fingers look normal between episodes, and the patient has not noticed hives. Which possibility best fits this pattern and should be flagged to the therapist?
Correct answer: D - Raynaud phenomenon
The therapist prescribes a properly wrapped hot pack for 15 minutes, with skin checks every 5 minutes, for a patient with intact sensation and circulation. At the first check, the skin is uniformly light pink and the patient describes comfortable warmth. There is no burning, mottling, or blistering. Select the appropriate response to these findings.
Correct answer: A - Continue for the prescribed duration, maintaining the scheduled skin checks.
Three months after a stroke, a patient can lift the right arm and move the right leg, but both remain weaker than the left side. Which term most precisely identifies both the distribution of the deficit and weakness rather than complete paralysis?
Correct answer: C - Right hemiparesis
The PTTC exam also covers these domains. Drill them in the full free practice test:
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