CV-BC exam guide
About the Cardiac-Vascular Nursing (CV-BC) exam
CV-BC assesses cardiovascular assessment, rhythm and diagnostic interpretation, evidence-based care, procedures and therapies, complication recognition, outcome evaluation, and patient and community education across cardiac and vascular conditions.
MedPorium is an independent education platform and is not affiliated with or endorsed by American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). Exam details can change; confirm them with the official source before applying.
CV-BC exam format at a glance
- Questions
- 150
- 125 scored; 25 unscored
- Time
- 3 hours
- Delivery
- Computer-based testing through Prometric
Knowledge to review for the CV-BC exam
These foundations support the practical tasks in the official examination matrix.
Cardiac-vascular assessment
- Anatomy, physiology, pathophysiology, risk, interview, and examination
- Rhythms, laboratory results, diagnostic tests, Doppler, stroke, and vascular assessment
- Ischemic, structural, rhythm, heart-failure, cerebrovascular, venous, and arterial presentations
Intervention and evaluation
- Guidelines, prioritization, medications, procedures, surgery, rehabilitation, and coordinated care
- Cardioversion, targeted temperature management, infection and VTE prevention
- Expected response, interactions, adverse events, hypotension, HIT, stroke, embolism, and access complications
Education and prevention
- Risk factors, self-monitoring, medication and procedure teaching
- Health literacy, barriers, individualized education, rehabilitation, and community resources
- Smoking cessation, lifestyle, wellness, remote monitoring, and follow-up
CV-BC examination matrix
The percentages below are the approximate exam-score weights published by American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). Use them to allocate study time, then adjust for your own weak areas.
22%
Assessment and Diagnosis
Collect and interpret cardiac-vascular history, examination, rhythm, laboratory, and diagnostic data.
- Perform systematic cardiac, vascular, neurologic, and risk assessment
- Interpret rhythms, biomarkers, imaging, hemodynamic and vascular findings
- Prioritize nursing diagnoses and recognize urgent or emergent change
35%
Planning and Implementation
Plan and deliver guideline-based pharmacologic, procedural, surgical, preventive, and coordinated care.
- Prioritize care using guidelines, ethics, consent, and patient goals
- Support cardiac, vascular, structural, surgical, and rehabilitation interventions
- Administer and monitor therapies while preventing infection, VTE, and other complications
18%
Evaluation and Modification
Evaluate response and modify care for interactions, adverse effects, urgent conditions, and emergencies.
- Compare clinical and functional outcomes with expected response
- Recognize drug interactions, adverse reactions, hypotension, bleeding, and HIT
- Escalate and respond to stroke, pulmonary embolism, hypertensive crisis, and procedure complications
25%
Patient and Community Education
Deliver individualized prevention, self-management, procedure, medication, monitoring, and community education.
- Teach risk reduction, medicines, procedures, warning signs, and self-monitoring
- Address literacy, culture, readiness, access, and learning barriers
- Connect patients with rehabilitation, anticoagulation, monitoring, wellness, and community resources
How to use this CV-BC diagnostic
Tag each response by the clinical loop: assessment and diagnosis, planning and intervention, evaluation and modification, or education. Also note whether the gap involved rhythm, hemodynamics, ischemia, heart failure, vascular disease, procedure care, pharmacology, emergency recognition, or prevention.
High-yield CV-BC study priorities
Priority 1
Use complete cardiovascular cases
Move from symptom and rhythm recognition through diagnostics, treatment, complication surveillance, education, and follow-up.
Priority 2
Pair procedures with complications
For every invasive or noninvasive intervention, know preparation, monitoring, expected findings, access issues, and urgent adverse events.
Priority 3
Rehearse medication-response decisions
Connect mechanism and indication with interactions, laboratory monitoring, hemodynamic response, adverse effects, and patient teaching.
Priority 4
Make education operational
Practise specific instructions for weights, blood pressure, anticoagulation, activity, diet, warning signs, rehabilitation, and when to seek help.
CV-BC exam FAQ
How many questions are on the CV-BC exam?
ANCC currently lists 150 questions: 125 scored questions and 25 unscored pretest questions that cannot be distinguished during the examination.
How long is the CV-BC exam?
ANCC allows 3 hours to answer the 150 questions.
How is the CV-BC content outline weighted?
The current outline is weighted Assessment and Diagnosis 22%, Planning and Implementation 35%, Evaluation and Modification 18%, Patient and Community Education 25%. Displayed percentages may differ from 100% by one point because of rounding.
Who should verify eligibility for CV-BC?
Candidates should confirm the current license, education, practice-hour, role, and continuing-education requirements on the official ANCC page before applying. This study page does not determine eligibility.
How is the CV-BC exam delivered?
ANCC offers the exam as a computer-based test scheduled through Prometric during the candidate's authorization window. Confirm current scheduling and identification requirements with ANCC and Prometric.
Does this diagnostic predict whether I will pass?
No. A 15-question diagnostic is a low-confidence baseline, not a validated pass prediction. Review every rationale, then use larger mixed and domain-specific sets to build a more stable readiness estimate.
Is MedPorium affiliated with ANCC?
No. MedPorium is an independent education platform and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the American Nurses Credentialing Center or American Nurses Association.
Review and official source
Clinical reviewer: L. P. Killarney
Exam format and matrix information were checked against the ANCC Cardiac-Vascular Nursing certification page. Source reviewed October 11, 2026.
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