Detailed Pathophysiology Report: Mr. Smith's Case Study Analysis

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of Mr. Smith's pathophysiology, addressing various aspects of his condition based on a provided case study. The report begins by differentiating between Mr. Smith's symptoms and signs, followed by a review of his personal, social, and family history. It anticipates the results of ordered tests, identifying potential complications. The report then delves into cellular adaptations, explaining the four mechanisms involved. It further explores the classification of neoplasms and explains how sickle cell anemia can induce ischemia, differentiating it from necrosis. Finally, the report contrasts sickle cell anemia and leukemia, comparing their pathophysiology, symptoms, signs, and lab results. The analysis is supported by relevant references and provides a thorough understanding of Mr. Smith's medical case.

Running Head: Mr. Smith’s Pathophysiology 1
Mr. Smith's pathophysiology
Student's Name
Institution
Date

Mr. Smith’s Pathophysiology 2
Pathophysiology for Mr. Smith's case
The symptoms that Mr. Smith has include fatigue, asthenia, arthralgia, and abdominal pain. The
signs presented include a distended abdomen, painful palpation, yellowish skin, and pale nail
beds, tachypnea.
The social and personal history of Mr. Smith is that he drinks alcohol and smokes cigarettes; he
is allergic to iodine and penicillin. His family history is that Mr. Smith's father suffers from
sickle cell anaemia, essential hypertension, and diabetes mellitus. The mother underwent
mastectomy years ago due to breast cancer and suffered from sickle cell anaemia. Results in tests
showed reduced RBC, Hemoglobin electrophoresis, which indicates abnormal haemoglobin,
including Hbs (Rifai, 2018). Abdominal ultrasound showed Mr. Smith’s enlarged spleen in the
left upper quadrant. The complications the patient is suffering from are tachycardia, tachypnea,
jaundice, fever and infection
The mechanisms of cellular adaptation include hyperplasia, the increased number of cells in the
body as a result of cellular replication, hypertrophy, the increase in the size of body cells,
atrophy, the adaptation that happens when the functional part of the cell decreases and
metaplasia, the adaptation that occurs when one type of tissue is replaced by another tissue type
("072 The Four Types Of Cellular Adaptations," 2014, December 16).
There are two types of neoplasm when they are classified according to origin. Benign neoplasms
that occur when cells grow as a compact mass and remain at their origin site. Malignant
neoplasm, which is the uncontrolled cells' growth at a particular site of origin in the body, which
then spreads to other tissues (Yohe, 2015).

Mr. Smith’s Pathophysiology 3
(Brown, 2016). When red blood cells become sickle shaped due to sickle cell anemia, they
reduce their capacity for carrying oxygen and stick to the capillary wall and also to each other,
which causes them to block blood flow and induce ischemia to a part in the body (Silent
Ischemia and Ischemic Heart Disease). Ischemia is the restriction of blood supply to tissue and
can be reversed, while necrosis is tissue death and is irreversible (Brown, 2016).
The difference between sickle cell anemia and leukemia is that sickle cell anemia affects red
blood cells causing them to lose shape thus affecting blood flow while leukemia is the condition
where there increased production of leucocytes which suppress production of normal cells thus
causing anemia (Brown, 2016). Signs and symptoms of sickle cell anemia include swelling of
body parts and fatigue. Lab results for sickle cell patients show low count for red blood cells and
platelets ad an increase in haemoglobin levels. Sign and symptoms for leukemia patients are
fever and headaches. Lab results for leukemia patients show neutropenia and thrombocytopenia.

Mr. Smith’s Pathophysiology 4
References
072 The Four Types Of Cellular Adaptations. (2014, December 16). Interactive Biology, with
Leslie Samuel. https://www.interactive-biology.com/3167/072-the-four-types-of-
cellular-adaptations/
Brown, R. T. (2016). Comprehensive Handbook of Childhood Cancer and Sickle Cell Disease:
A Biopsychosocial Approach. Oxford University Press.
Yohe, S. L. (2015). Classification of Plasma Cell Neoplasms. Plasma Cell Neoplasms, 65-
78. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-10918-3_4
Rifai, N. (2018). Tietz Fundamentals of Clinical Chemistry and Molecular Diagnostics - E-Book.
St. Louis, MO: Elsevier Health Sciences.