Assignment on Nursing Practice (pdf)

Running head: NURSING
Nursing Practice: Developing Integrated Care
Name of student:
Name of university:
Author note:

1NURSING
Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................2
Part A...............................................................................................................................................2
Part B...............................................................................................................................................6
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................10
References......................................................................................................................................12

2NURSING
Introduction
The present paper is based on a case study that has the prime focus on Asthma, a
respiratory disorder suffered by millions of individuals across the globe. The patient in the
present case is seven year old Zacky who presents with clinical manifestations of asthma. The
first section of the paper deals with the pathophysiology of asthma and the clinical
manifestations of Zachy’s condition. A pathophysiological perspective is discussed in relation to
the condition presented by the patient. The second part of the paper elaborates the
pharmacological management of the patient. This includes pharmacodynamics of the
medications, clinical considerations and other considerations. A care plan is outlined for the
patient that encompasses relevant assessments, important interdisciplinary roles and patient
education.
Part A
Pathophysiology of Asthma and link to the clinical manifestations of Zachy's presentation
Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disorder of the airways that is marked by chronic
inflammation of the respiratory tubes, tightening of the respiratory smooth muscles and
bronchoconstriction. The condition is known to affect around 300 million people around the
globe. Studies report that among children, males are at a higher risk of suffering from asthma.
Asthma involves different pathophysiologic factors that includes bronchiolar inflammation and
airway constriction and manifests into different health conditions. The immunohistopathologic
features of this condition include infiltration of inflammatory cells such as eosinophils,
neutrophils, lymphocytes, mast cell activation and epithelial cell injury (Bullock & Hales, 2012).

3NURSING
Understanding the pathophysiology of asthma is crucial for understanding how the
condition is to be diagnosed and what treatment plan is to be outlined for a patient. The
knowledge of the pathogenesis of asthma has undergone significant evolution in the last few
decades. According to Marieb and Hoehn (2007) asthma is a complex inflammatory disorder in
which the inflammatory cells and inflammatory mediators lead to inflammatory effects such as
plasma exudation, bronchoconstriction, mucus hypersecretion and sensory nerve activation.
Asthma is the result of the chronic inflammation of the conducting zone of the airways. This
mainly leads to incresed contractability of the smooth muscles present around the area. This
condition, along with other factors is the cause of bouts of narrowing of the airway. Particular
changes in the airway encompass increase in the level of eosinophil, thickening of the lamina
reticularis. The smooth muscle of the airways might increase in size accompanied by increased
mucous gland numbers.
Asthma might be atopic, nonatopic or a combination of the both. Atopic asthma initiates
in childhood and is associated with triggers that lead to severe wheezing. It usually arises from
exposure and consequent response to a particular allergen, such as mites, tree pollen, smoke, pet
dander of particular foods (Lambrecht & Hammad, 2015). In the present case, it is evident that
Zachy is suffering from atopic asthma as he had previously never suffered any clinical
manifestations of asthma before in his life.
Zachy has been found to be suffering from the major symptoms as a result of airway
narrowing. Inflammation plays a central role in the pathophysiology of asthma. The main
concern, airway inflammation is related to interaction of the cell types and multiple mediators
that eventually lead to pathophysiological features of the disease. Airway inflammation is due to
different changes in the airway of the individual. The prime change that occurs in the respiratory