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Surgical Tech Practice Test: Free CST Exam Questions (Certified Surgical Technologist)

500 practice questions for the Certified Surgical Technologist (CST) exam, built on the current CST content outline. They follow its 8 sub-areas, weighted the way the real exam is: Intraoperative Procedures (68 of the 150 scored items), Preoperative Preparation (19), Anatomy and Physiology (18), Equipment Sterilization and Maintenance (16), Postoperative Procedures (10), Administrative and Personnel (7), and Microbiology and Surgical Pharmacology (6 each), and they cover every task under them. Most are moments at the back table or the Mayo stand: which flap you open first, where the axillary roll goes, what the closing count is short of, which needle goes on bowel, why Surgicel goes on dry, which spores test the steam sterilizer, how many milligrams are in 18 mL of 0.5% bupivacaine. Each is tagged to its outline task, so your score report shows exactly where you miss, and every answer explains why the best choice is best and names its public source.

The real test: 175 multiple-choice questions (150 scored, 25 unscored pretest placed at random) in 4 hours, at a PSI test center or on campus. You pass by getting 98 of the 150 scored questions right. Breaks are allowed, but the clock keeps running and you can't go back to earlier questions after one. It follows NBSTSA's content outline: Perioperative Care (97 of the 150 scored items: preoperative 19, intraoperative 68, postoperative 10), Ancillary Duties (23) and Basic Science (30: anatomy and physiology 18, microbiology 6, pharmacology 6). Our practice test is full length, 150 scored questions plus 25 unscored, split by the outline's item counts, passing at 98 of 150 like the real one.

Here: 500 questions. Our own practice questions, built on the CST content outline and written from public sources (CDC surgical site infection, disinfection and sterilization, environmental and isolation guidelines, the WHO Surgical Safety Checklist, The Joint Commission Universal Protocol and NPSGs, OSHA and NIOSH, FDA device and drug labels, ASA, MHAUS, AST best-practice guidelines and NIH StatPearls), with every answer's source named. Topics are the 8 sub-areas of the outline. Not NBSTSA's test questions. Free.

What's on the test

"On the test" is the rough share of a 150-question test for each topic, following the exam's published weights.

10 sample questions

1. Which fingernail rule applies to members of the scrubbed surgical team?

   • A.Acrylic nails are fine as long as two pairs of gloves are worn
   • B.Any polish is acceptable if it was applied within the past month
   • C.Nails left about half an inch long so gloves don't tear at the tips
   • D.Natural nails kept short, with no artificial nails or extenders
   Show answer

   D. Natural nails kept short, with no artificial nails or extenders

   CST-1 · I.A Preoperative Preparation

2. Two scrubbed team members need to pass each other in the OR. How do they do it?

   • A.Back to back, or front to front
   • B.Any way at all, as long as both keep gloved hands up high
   • C.Side by side, both facing the field, with arms folded tight across the chest
   • D.One faces the field while the other turns toward the wall
   Show answer

   A. Back to back, or front to front

   CST-71 · I.B Intraoperative Procedures

3. How are the drapes taken off the patient at the end of the case?

   • A.Pulled off quickly in one sweep toward the floor, the fastest way to clear the patient
   • B.Fanned out and shaken to free any instruments
   • C.Rolled away from the incision, watching for drains, lines and tubes
   • D.Left on until the patient reaches recovery
   Show answer

   C. Rolled away from the incision, watching for drains, lines and tubes

   CST-292 · I.C Postoperative Procedures

4. A surgeon now always asks for a different suture than the one on the preference card. What should be done?

   • A.Bring both sutures every time, without changing the card or telling anyone about it
   • B.Keep pulling the old suture, since the card is the rule
   • C.Update the card so it matches what the surgeon now uses
   • D.Wait for the surgeon to rewrite the card personally
   Show answer

   C. Update the card so it matches what the surgeon now uses

   CST-326 · II.A Administrative and Personnel

5. The ESU's return-pad alarm sounds and the unit stops working. What is checked first?

   • A.The light source intensity
   • B.The suction canister
   • C.The power setting, which should be turned up until the unit starts working again
   • D.The pad's contact with the skin and its cord connection
   Show answer

   D. The pad's contact with the skin and its cord connection

   CST-349 · II.B Equipment Sterilization and Maintenance

6. What does the suffix '-ostomy' mean?

   • A.Repair of a structure
   • B.A surgically made opening
   • C.Cutting into an organ, then closing it at the end
   • D.Removal of an organ
   Show answer

   B. A surgically made opening

   CST-402 · III.A Anatomy and Physiology

7. Which organism is among the most common causes of surgical site infections?

   • A.Staphylococcus aureus
   • B.Influenza virus
   • C.Candida albicans, the yeast that lives on most people's skin and mouth
   • D.Streptococcus mutans
   Show answer

   A. Staphylococcus aureus

   CST-461 · III.B Microbiology

8. Which muscle relaxant can trigger malignant hyperthermia?

   • A.Succinylcholine
   • B.Cisatracurium, which breaks down on its own in the blood
   • C.Vecuronium
   • D.Rocuronium
   Show answer

   A. Succinylcholine

   CST-481 · III.C Surgical Pharmacology

9. When should hands be washed with soap and water rather than cleaned with an alcohol-based rub?

   • A.When they are visibly dirty or soiled with blood or body fluids
   • B.Only once a day, after the last case is finished
   • C.Only when gloves weren't worn, since gloves keep hands clean underneath
   • D.Never; in the OR an alcohol rub always replaces washing
   Show answer

   A. When they are visibly dirty or soiled with blood or body fluids

   CST-2 · I.A Preoperative Preparation

10. Where should a scrubbed person keep the hands when they aren't working?

    • A.Clasped behind the back to stay out of the way
    • B.Resting at the sides, below the level of the waist
    • C.In front, between the waist and the shoulders
    • D.Tucked into the armpits to keep the gloves warm and out of the way of the team
    Show answer

    C. In front, between the waist and the shoulders

    CST-72 · I.B Intraoperative Procedures

What the study guide does

• Short study rounds and flip cards.
• A practice test built like the real one: 150 questions, 98 to pass.
• Pass Meter: your chance of passing if you sat the test today, worked out from your own answers.
• An explanation for every answer.