General Pathology USMLE Step 1 Practice Question
A 58-year-old man with poorly controlled hypertension (BP 168/102 mmHg, HR 88 bpm) for 15 years presents with exertional dyspnea. Physical examination reveals no peripheral edema or jugular venous distension. Echocardiography demonstrates concentric left ventricular wall thickening with preserved ejection fraction (60%) and normal chamber dimensions. Left ventricular mass index is elevated at 145 g/m². Which cellular adaptation most likely produced these cardiac changes?
Answer choices
- AIrreversible genetic transformation with autonomous growth
- BIncrease in cell size due to increased synthesis of structural proteinsCorrect answer
- CReplacement of one mature cell type by another
- DIncrease in cell number due to hormone driven proliferation
- EDisordered atypical epithelial proliferation confined above the basement membrane
- FDecrease in cell size due to selective degradation of contractile filaments
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