The Febrile Patient MCQ Quiz | Infectious Diseases – General

Welcome to this specialized multiple-choice quiz on ‘The Febrile Patient’, a cornerstone topic in General Infectious Diseases for MBBS students. This quiz is designed to test your understanding of the pathophysiology of fever, differential diagnoses, patterns of fever, and the clinical approach to patients presenting with pyrexia, including the challenging scenario of Pyrexia of Unknown Origin (PUO). Covering key concepts from etiology to management, these 25 questions will help you consolidate your knowledge and prepare for your examinations. After submitting your answers, you will receive your score and see a detailed breakdown of correct and incorrect responses. You can also download all the questions with their correct answers in a PDF format for future revision.

1. What is the most widely accepted definition of fever in an adult patient?

2. The central thermoregulatory center of the body, which is reset to a higher level during a fever, is located in the:

3. Which of the following is an example of an endogenous pyrogen that directly acts on the hypothalamus?

4. A patient exhibits a fever that is continuously present above normal and varies by more than 1°C in 24 hours. This pattern is best described as:

5. Pel-Ebstein fever, characterized by several days of high fever alternating with several days of afebrile periods, is classically associated with:

6. According to the classic Petersdorf and Beeson criteria, Pyrexia of Unknown Origin (PUO) is defined as a fever higher than 38.3°C on several occasions, lasting for at least:

7. In modern practice, which category of diseases is the most common cause of classic PUO in adults?

8. Which of the following conditions is a well-known cause of factitious fever?

9. Faget’s sign, or relative bradycardia, is a classic finding in which of the following febrile illnesses?

10. The initial diagnostic workup for a stable patient with PUO should always include:

11. A markedly elevated procalcitonin level in a febrile patient is most suggestive of:

12. A patient develops a fever 10 days after starting a new medication. The fever resolves within 48 hours of discontinuing the drug. What is the most likely diagnosis?

13. Which of the following defines nosocomial PUO?

14. What is the primary mechanism of action of antipyretics like paracetamol and NSAIDs?

15. A returning traveler from rural India presents with high fever, headache, and a painless black eschar (tache noire) on his leg. This is highly suggestive of:

16. Neutropenic fever is defined as a single oral temperature of ≥38.3°C or a temperature of ≥38.0°C for ≥1 hour, with an absolute neutrophil count (ANC) of:

17. Which of these is a significant non-infectious cause of fever?

18. The presence of shaking chills (rigors) in a febrile patient most strongly suggests:

19. In HIV-associated PUO, which of the following opportunistic infections is a common cause, especially when the CD4 count is very low?

20. What is the difference between hyperthermia and fever?

21. A young adult presents with high fever, sore throat, posterior cervical lymphadenopathy, and splenomegaly. A peripheral blood smear shows atypical lymphocytes. The most likely diagnosis is:

22. Which imaging modality is currently most valuable in the work-up of a complex PUO case to identify occult sites of inflammation or malignancy?

23. A patient with a history of rheumatic heart disease presents with fever, a new heart murmur, and splinter hemorrhages. The most important initial investigation to order is:

24. What is the most common cause of an intra-abdominal abscess leading to PUO?

25. A patient on chemotherapy for leukemia is admitted with a fever of 39°C and an ANC of 200 cells/mm³. What is the most critical immediate step in management?