Peripheral vascular disease or Peripheral artery disease is caused by arteriosclerosis, or "hardening of the arteries."
Peripheral vascular disease or Peripheral artery disease is caused by arteriosclerosis, or "hardening of the arteries." This problem occurs when plaque builds up on the walls of the arteries. This causes the arteries to become narrower. The walls of the arteries also become stiffer and cannot dilate to allow greater blood flow when needed. Eventually hypoxia and tissue death may occur. Peripheral artery disease is a common disorder that usually affects men over age 50. People are at higher risk if they have a history of: * Abnormal cholesterol * Diabetes * Coronary Artery Disease * Hypertension * Renal disease involving hemodialysis * Smoking * Stroke Early Signs and Symptoms Late Signs and Symptoms Pain Impotence Achiness Pain and cramps at night Fatigue Pain or tingling in feet or toes (can be sensitive to linens or clothes) Burning Pain that is worse with elevation and improves when lowered. Discomfort in legs, calves or thighs. These symptoms usually appear during exercise and go away after minutes of rest. Ulcers that do not heal. Assessment: * A whooshing sound with the stethoscope over the artery (arterial bruits) * Decreased blood pressure in the affected limb * Loss of hair on the legs or feet * Weak or absent pulses in the limb When PAD is more severe, findings may include: * Calf muscles that shrink (wither) * Hair loss over the toes and
Renal Impairment -Case study
During this placement a case study will be produced focusing on a patient with renal impairments. The aim of the assignment is to assess, plan, implement and evaluate on the nurnnsing care provided to the patient. It will be focusing on three main problems the patient has whilst there stay at the hospital. The three main problems the patient is having is pain, affected by his body image due to an arterial venous fistula and uncontrolled blood glucose. The assignment will be following guidelines from the Roper Logon Tierney Model used in practice as a framework to provide the best care possible. Roper Logon Tierney Model is the common used framework for health care professionals in the hospital environment. It designed as a guide for nurses and nursing assistant to use in practice. Throughout the case study the patient’s identification will remain anonymous. Hence the patient will be referred to as John Wilkinson, in order to protect the client’s privacy during their stay at the hospital; this comes under the guidelines set out by the nursing and midwifery council. Furthermore it ensures that the assignment will keep the patients right of confidentiality. (Nursing and Midwifery council 2004) John Wilkinson is a 40 year old married man and lives with his partner Mrs. Mildred Wilkinson in a flat above their small bakery. John used to work as a baker, but he became partially
Molecular targets of best-selling drugs (short review)
Molecular targets of best-selling drugs (short review) Each drug has a specific molecular target in which it acts on. Some drugs have enzymes as their main molecular target by either activating or inhibiting them, whereas other drugs act on specific receptors (sensing elements). Other drugs act on ion channels which can be direct or indirect. Other types of drugs act on transporters (Carrier molecules). A specific molecular change takes place when a drug binds to its particular receptor. The molecular changes lead to further changes in physiological or psychological functions. Some drugs act as agonists whereas some act as antagonists. Agonists bind to a particular receptor and initiate a cellular response however on the other hand antagonists do not initiate any biological response. Pharmcodynamics is the study of the physiological and biochemical interaction of drug molecules with the molecular target which triggers an effect. Navispare (Cyclopenthiazide & Amiloride Hydrochloride) acts on the distal renal tubule in the kidney (sodium-chloride transporter). Navispare consists of the two active ingredients in which each of them has a particular function. Cyclopenthiazide is a thiazide diuretic which functions by inhibiting the reabsorption of sodium chloride and water at the distal renal tubule. This will therefore increase the amount of salts (Na+ + K+) and water filtered
The Female Breast
The Female Breast Describe the structure of the breast. Include a diagram. The breast are actually modified sweat glands, accessories to the major reproductive organs. The layer of skin over the breast is smoother than elsewhere on the body and the skin of the nipple and its surrounding area (aerial) is particularly thin. It is here that the sweat and sebaceous glands are contained. The nipple is cylindrical or conical in shape, and responds to sexual arousal by becoming erect. Each of a women's breast consists of 15 to 20 groups of milk producing glands embedded in fatty tissue. Milk ducts run from the glandular groups, through the core of the nipple and open at the tip. During pregnancy the release of specific hormones from the placenta and the pituitary gland causes the breasts to enlarge and produce sufficient milk for feeding. 2. Outline the development of the female breast with reference to birth, puberty, adolescence, pregnancy, childbirth and the menopausal. At birth the mammary gland appear similar in both males and females as slight elevations in the anterior chest wall. In the male there is normally no further development in the breasts. At puberty the female breasts begin to develop stimulated by the female sex hormones produced in the ovaries, as they become active. The mammary glands enlarge and the ducts increase in number and become elongated. Additional
Tissue Engineering
Cells have been cultured, or grown, outside the body for many years, but the possibility of growing complex, 3-D tissues - which is literally reproducing the design and function of human tissue - is a recent development. This filed of tissue engineering sounds exciting, but I am going to see what it offers modern medicine. This is the Tissue Engineering Process - from the cell culture and tissue formation in the laboratory to delivery by the surgeon to the patient Potential use of tissue engineering is best seen with chronic leg ulcers Elderly or diabetic patients get sores on their legs that refuse to heal. These cause constant pain and discomfort. Cause by a failure of natural healing to 'kick -in' and natural biological signals that are given off by the body to start healing are missing. We can use tissue engineering to create a 'living bandage' This will provide the biological signals needed to start the healing and the healing process gets a 'jump start.' Old ladies and men are now happy! :) Sounds easy, but its not! How do you make a tissue - engineered living bandage of skin? Well, the typical elements are one or more types of living cell from a human donor, or the patient himself. Cells are held on a material support made from a polymer This support will form a structure on which the cells will grow, this will eventually form an 'engineered tissue' that the
What is the disease? Gas Gangrene is a very horrific disease and causes many deaths and injuries.
What is the disease? Gas Gangrene is a very horrific disease and causes many deaths and injuries. Gangrene is defined as the destruction of tissue, which cuts the blood off to an affected part of the body because of an infection, vascular disease or trauma. The most commonly affected parts of the body are the extremities (feet, leg, hands). Gangrene is also known as clostridial gangrene and clostridial myonecrosis. Causes Gas gangrene is the most life threatening form of gangrene. It occurs were a wound is open to bacterial spores, which mainly are clostridium. These bacteria enter the wound and rest. Clostridium is an anaerobic bacterium, which means the bacteria, grows best in the absence of oxygen. Because human tissue contains a lot of oxygen the bacteria is rarely bothered, but when they clostridia grow, they release gases and poisons into the body. This then will cause infection of gangrene and possibly death. Symptoms and complications The symptoms of gangrene are very quick and occur in a very short time span. * Severe pain around injury * Progressive swelling * Fever * Skin colour turns from a pale colour to a dark red or purple. * Blisters filled with a brown red fluid * Blister bursts with the brown red fluid coming out leaving a terrible and foul smell. * Increase in heart rate * Sweating The after or long term affects are: * Tissue damage
Cell cycle abnormalities in cancer
Cell Cycle Abnormalities in Cancer. Introduction The cell cycle is a complex topic, parts of which are still being explored today. As cancer grows more prolific in today's society, affecting 1 in 3 of us in the UK in our lifetime, the topic is under scrutiny as the complete understanding of these processes could one day give us a cure for cancer. In this report, I plan to outline the processes that lead to cell proliferation, identify and explain the checkpoints that protect and maintain the integrity of the genome of all human cells, identify key processes that, when mutated, can lead to unchecked cell proliferation, and to highlight the oncogenes involved in most cancers. I will show, that in many of the processes, the loss of key factors could lead to damaged DNA being passed on to daughter cells, leading to mutations that cause tumour genesis. I will also identify, explain the relevance of, and explain the role of key genes that have been discovered to have a major role in cancer. Abstract. The cell cycle consists of five main phases: G0, G1, S, G2 and M phase. G0 phase is described as cells senescence, when, due to signals from checkpoints, such as a cyclin cascade initiated by p53, a prevalent cell cycle blockade, the cell halts all cell cycle progress. This may be due to a signal being shown that DNA has been damaged; this would mean that cell cycle progress would
To what extent can autoimmunity be described as the breakdown of self tolerance and how far have animal models contributed to our understanding of human autoimmune disease?
Felicity J Walker-Buckton Magdalen College To what extent can autoimmunity be described as the breakdown of self tolerance and how far have animal models contributed to our understanding of human autoimmune disease? Introduction Autoimmunity is the propagation of adaptive immunity specific for self antigens. The obligation of preventing such an occurrence was recognised by Ehrlich who described the possibility of 'Horror autotoxicus'. In his 'clonal selection' theory, Burnet proposed that tolerance to self antigens is achieved by clonal deletion or inactivation of developing lymphocytes in the thymus or the periphery. In the present day it is realised that this self/non-self reductionism is insufficient to explain a number of characteristics of the immune system; firstly, the content of self changes in host life, for example the production of sperm at puberty in males; secondly, most of self antigens, e.g. heat shock proteins are not absolutely different from non-self structures; thirdly, recognition of self is indeed required for the continued survival of mature lymphocytes; fourthly, antigenic recognition by MHC is promiscuous and imprecise and finally (and perhaps most convincingly); autoreactive T and B cells are present even in healthy individuals. These considerations indicate that antigens (Ag) can reside in a 'no mans land' of the immune system in which they
For the completion of the Applied Physiology assignment, students are asked to research and discuss the structure and function of three of the bodies systems, these systems are respiratory, cardiovascular and renal.
Introduction For the completion of the Applied Physiology assignment, students are asked to research and discuss the structure and function of three of the bodies systems, these systems are respiratory, cardiovascular and renal. Research will then be done on the composition and function of blood, explaining the normal function of red and white blood cells and platelets. This will also include the destruction process and the normal clotting mechanism. Students are also asked to describe the relationship between the three systems and homeostatic mechanisms in maintaining physiological function. This will also mean looking at the structure of the trachea and nose, the bronchi and the lungs and the heart and the lungs to explain homeostasis. All of these systems may experience disorders within their normal mechanisms i.e. coronary heart disease, cardiovascular disease, chronic respiratory diseases and renal diseases. Blood groups will also be identified and the Rhesus factor described, this will also include the causes of iron deficiency and anaemia. Relate structure and function of the respiratory system, the cardiovascular system and the renal system The respiratory system The respiratory system consists of the nasal cavity, pharynx, larynx, trachea, bronchi, the lungs, alveoli, rib cage and the diaphragm. Working together with breathing muscles the respiratory system
A Review of the Uses and Disadvantages of Various Renal Micropuncture Techniques
A Review of the Uses and Disadvantages of Various Renal Micropuncture Techniques This essay will critically review some of the major uses of renal micropuncture techniques, focusing in particular on the stationary method, free-flow micropuncture and renal microperfusion, the latter including both in vivo and in vitro methods. The essay will conclude with a short review of other uses of micropuncture. Wearn and Richards (1924) were the first people to use micropuncture successfully on the kidney. They successfully inserted a micropipette into the glomerulus of a single amphibian nephron and their results provided conclusive evidence that ultrafiltration of the blood occurred at this site. Walker, Bott, Oliver and MacDowell (1941) later extended the technique to the proximal and distal convoluted tubules. They demonstrated isosmotic reabsorption in the proximal convoluted tubule, and an above plasma concentration of chloride ions. This latter result implied that reabsorption in the kidney was not a simple passive affair. Gottschalk and Mylle (1958) micropunctured the loop of Henle providing conclusive evidence for Kuhn's theoretical countercurrent multiplier system, and Sakai, Jamison and Berliner (1965) micropunctured the collecting duct. A problem with micropuncture techniques is that they require exceptionally fine and skilled micromanipulation to avoid puncturing the