Certified Wound Specialist Flashcards
7 cards from real CWS practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Certified Wound Specialist flashcards as text
Which finding on a wound culture is most clinically significant when determining treatment for a chronic wound?
Answer: Growth of beta-hemolytic Streptococcus at any level
Beta-hemolytic Streptococcus (Groups A, B, C, G) is pathogenic at any level and consistently associated with impaired wound healing and clinical infection.
A patient with a sacral pressure injury has a wound packed with necrotic tissue that cannot be visualized to the base. How should this be staged?
Answer: Unstageable
When the depth of a pressure injury cannot be determined due to slough or eschar obscuring the wound base, it is classified as Unstageable.
Which skin substitute is classified as a bilayered living cellular construct containing both dermis and epidermis?
Answer: Apligraf
Apligraf is a bilayered living cellular construct with a bovine collagen dermal layer seeded with human fibroblasts and an epidermal layer of human keratinocytes.
In the care of a patient with lymphedema and a wound, which intervention is the cornerstone of treatment?
Answer: Complete decongestive therapy (CDT)
Complete decongestive therapy (CDT), including manual lymphatic drainage, compression, exercise, and skin care, is the standard of care for lymphedema management.
Which assessment tool uses six subscales—sensory perception, moisture, activity, mobility, nutrition, and friction/shear—to predict pressure injury risk?
Answer: Braden Scale
The Braden Scale assesses six subscales to predict pressure injury risk, with lower scores indicating higher risk (score ≤18 considered at risk).
A patient develops callus formation around a plantar neuropathic ulcer. What is the primary reason to debride the callus?
Answer: Callus increases plantar pressure by up to 30% and impedes wound healing
Callus acts as a rigid foreign body that increases focal plantar pressure by up to 30%, impeding epithelialization and contributing to ulcer persistence.
Which electrophysical modality uses electrical stimulation to promote wound healing by mimicking the body's natural 'current of injury'?
Answer: Electrical stimulation (e-stim)
Electrical stimulation mimics the body's endogenous bioelectric current of injury, promoting cell migration, proliferation, and angiogenesis to enhance wound healing.