Pharmacology: Managing Diabetes and High Cholesterol Levels

Running head: PHARMACOLOGY
PHARMACOLOGY
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PHARMACOLOGY
The patient named Mavin is a 45-year-old indigenous woman who is presently caring for
her husband who has faced leg amputation due to vascular disorders. On close analysis of the
different disorders that the patient is going through, it is noticed that she is having a wound that
is not healing well at all. This is mainly seen that the person is suffering from diabetes from the
past ten years and had not been able to maintain the symptoms well. She is often seen to forget
the medications on the right time and therefore, it becomes extremely difficult for the patient to
maintain her symptoms properly. When she had visited the healthcare centre, she had quite high
values in different tests conducted by the healthcare professionals. Her blood pressure was quite
high for about 180/90 that is quite higher than the normal blood pressure of 120/80 (Madiraju et
al. 2014). The pulse was 94 that were within the safe range of 60 to 100. The serum cholesterol
level was found to be 8.4 mmol/L. The normal value mainly should state below 5.2 mmol/L.
when it becomes higher than 6.2 mmol/L, it is considered to be high. So the patient has high
cholesterol level. The triglyceride level was found to be above the high level of 5.6 mmol/L and
therefore, it becomes extremely important to consider these abnormal tests results while
developing care plan and developing medication plans. The HbA1c level is also found to be 8.
Researchers are of the opinion that a value of below 65 is extremely important to be set for
maintaining proper glucose level in blood (Aroda et al., 2015).
The term HbA1c mainly means glycated haemoglobin. When the protein called
hemoglobin present within the red blood cells are attached with glucose present in the blood and
carries oxygen throughout the body, it is seen to become glycated. With the help of measuring
the glycated hemoglobin, the healthcare professionals can successfully understand the overall
picture of the blood sugar levels that have been present over a period (Balselles et al., 2015). It is
evident from the case study, that the patient has high levels of HbA1c that in turn indicates

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PHARMACOLOGY
poorly maintained diabetic condition in the patient. The increase of the serum cholesterol level
and the increase of the triglycerides are well associated with the improper maintenance of
diabetes. Researchers are of the opinion that when the patients do not effectively control the
diabetes, there will be high level of glucose as well as insulin in the blood. When insulin is
present, it results in the conversion of glucose into the glycogen that thereby helps in the storage
of glycogen in the liver. When the liver is seen to become too much saturated with glycogen,
glucose is seen to be utilized for the creation of the fatty acids that are realized in the blood
stream (Cafes et al., 2015). In course of time, it is seen that these fatty acids are seen to make
more number of glycerides that result in building up of fat in the cells. This is in turn seen to
result in development of body fat that creates a situation of obesity. Researchers are of the
opinion that high levels of glucose caused by the occurrence of diabetes over time affect the
nerves resulting in neuropathy and thereby they can lead to poor circulation of blood. Therefore,
blood required for skin repairment for reaching the areas of the body affected by sores and
wounds cannot be obtained (Stokum et al., 2017). These mainly result in the wounds remaining
open as well as unhealed for months resulting in gangrene, fungal infections as well as bacterial
infections.
Therefore, effective medications need to be taken by the patient so that she can
effectively control the symptoms of diabetes and thereby get free from the disorders that are
resulting from the source of poor management of diabetes. Therefore, in such situation,
metformin can be used. The nursing professionals should help the patient develop education and
knowledge about the use of medication so that the patient becomes careful about her approach
towards medication and aligns with the medication regime to keep her fit (Farmer et al., 2016).
The professionals should provide metformin with proper diet and exercise along with other