Hive Medical Trivia: Weekend Wrap-up

This week was a bit intense with the medical trivia questions. It is time to update your understanding regarding the answers to the questions.

By the way, a huge thank you to everyone who has participated or supported the initiative in one way or another.

Without much further ado, let us dive right in.

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🟩 Friday

Question: Which of the following is a long-term risk for people with IBD?

Options:

• A) Higher chance of colon cancer
• B) Hair loss
• C) Diabetes
• D) Liver failure

Correct Answer: ✅ A) Higher chance of colon cancer
Explanation: Inflammatory Bowel Disease(IBD) is a group of long term conditions that cause inflammation of the gastrointestinal system and usually causes symptoms like diarrhea, abdominal pain and fatigue.

There are 2 main types. Ulcerative Colitis, and Crohn's disease. They both increase the risk of bowel cancer, but Ulcerative Colitis, is especially linked to an increased long-term risk of colorectal cancer due to chronic inflammation. Regular check-ups using a test called colonoscopy is usually recommended.

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🟨 Thursday

Question: Which of the following is more common in Crohn’s disease than in Ulcerative Colitis?

Options:

• A) Only the large intestine being inflamed
• B) Bleeding with every bowel movement
• C) Symptoms only in the rectum
• D) Mouth sores and pain anywhere along the digestive tract

Correct Answer: ✅ D) Mouth sores and pain anywhere along the digestive tract
Explanation: Crohn’s disease can affect the entire GI tract (from mouth to anus), unlike Ulcerative Colitis, which is limited to the colon. Oral ulcers(mouth ulcers) are a one of the major manifestations of Crohn’s outside of the intestines

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🟦 Wednesday

Question: A 23-year-old man comes to the clinic with bloody diarrhea, stomach pain, and weight loss. The symptoms have been coming and going for months. What is the most likely cause?

Options:

• A) Inflammatory Bowel Disease
• B) Food poisoning
• C) Constipation
• D) IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome)

Correct Answer: ✅ A) Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Explanation: The fact that he has had this for months, the blood in stool, weight loss, and abdominal pain strongly suggest IBD—either Crohn’s or Ulcerative Colitis, as opposed to IBS(Irritable Bowel Syndrome) or acute food poisoning.

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🟥 Tuesday

Question: A 55-year-old man presents with chest pain at rest. His ECG is non-specific, but his troponin is normal. What is the most likely diagnosis?

Options:

• A) Unstable angina
• B) Stable angina
• C) STEMI
• D) Angina pectoris

Correct Answer: ✅ A) Unstable angina

Explanation:
There are a couple of terms that need explanation with this one. Firstly, an ECG is a test that checks the electrical activity of the heart. It can help doctors know when someone is having a heart attack, even if the person does not have a chest pain. Sometimes, the results from the ECG does not help the doctors find out what is happening, that is when it is called a "non-specific result".
Angina, is the clinical term for chest pain. It can be stable or unstable. Stable means that it is a chest pain that is made worse by exercise or activity. It is stable in the sense that you know what will make it worse.

Unstable angina is the exact opposite, even when the individual is resting, the pain can still be present. Exercise may make it worse, but the pain can be made worse by just resting.

For the doctors to be sure that the pain is because of something happening with the heart, they usually request a test called troponin. Troponin is a chemical that the heart and other muscles produce. There are some specific types that come from the heart alone. When a heart attack occurs, the heart cells get damaged and this chemical leaks out.

So even if the ecg is not specific, if there is a heart attack happening, the levels of the troponin in the blood will indicate that something needs to be done urgently.

🟧 Monday

Question: A patient recovering from NSTEMI is being discharged. Which medication is NOT typically included in secondary prevention?

Options:

• A) Antibiotics
• B) Beta-blockers
• C) Statins
• D) Antiplatelets

Correct Answer: ✅ A) Antibiotics

Explanation:
NSTEMI is a type of heart attack. it means that a part of the heart is not getting enough blood because one of the arteries has been partially blocked.

After treating people with this kind of heart attack, doctors would typically give them some medications to help prevent them from having another heart attack when they are being discharged. That is what is called Post-NSTEMI discharge medications, or secondary prevention.

They usually include beta-blockers, statins, dual antiplatelet therapy, and ACE inhibitors. Antibiotics are not part of secondary prevention unless there's a clear infection.

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I hope this has increased your knowledge of medicine and the various things that happen with both inflammatory bowel disease and heart attacks. If you have questions please put them in the comment below.