A patient has no verbal or motor response to painful stimuli. What is the Glasgow Coma Scale score?

• A. 3
• B. 6
• C. 9
• D. 12

Answer: (A)

The Glasgow Coma Scale sums responses across three areas: eye opening, verbal response, and motor response, with higher values indicating better responsiveness. If there’s no verbal output, the verbal component sits at its lowest value. If there’s no motor movement in response to pain, the motor component also sits at its lowest value. If the patient also shows no eye opening to any stimulus, the eye-opening component is at its lowest as well. Adding these three lowest scores gives the minimum possible total on the scale, which is what this scenario describes. If any domain showed even minimal responsiveness—eye opening to pain, vocalization, or purposeful movement—the total would be higher.