Pathophysiology Case Study Analysis: Marie's Pneumonia Treatment

This case study examines a patient, Marie, diagnosed with left lower lobe pneumonia, likely community-acquired. The assignment delves into the pathophysiology, explaining the inflammatory response in the lungs, leading to fluid accumulation and respiratory distress. It explores the etiology, including potential bacterial, viral, and fungal causes, considering Marie's pre-existing asthma and increased risk of severe respiratory distress. The study analyzes the affected bodily functions, particularly respiration, and the resulting fatigue due to impaired oxygen supply. Clinical manifestations like dyspnea, cough, and fatigue are discussed, differentiating between local and systemic symptoms. Treatment options, including broad-spectrum antibiotics and oxygen therapy, are proposed, along with nursing goals focused on managing the pneumonia and preventing asthma triggers. The study references key medical literature to support the analysis and treatment strategies.

Running head: PATHOPHYSIOLOGY CASE STUDY
PATHOPHYSIOLOGY CASE STUDY
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author Note:

1PATHOPHYSIOLOGY CASE STUDY
Answer 1.
Left lower lobe pneumonia results from an incident of microbial infection at the left
lower lobe of the lungs. The infection activates the immune system of the body by activating
the resident macrophages inside the lungs. The macrophages, in turn, trigger an inflammatory
response at the site of infection. The activity of various inflammatory mediators results in the
leakage of the lining capillaries, and thus there is an accumulation of the fluids inside the
lungs (Jain and Bhardwaj, 2019). The phenomenon results in a lung congestion event, which
is responsible for the tachypnea and orthopnea condition in the patient.
Answer 2.
Marie was on vacation prior to acquiring this disease condition. Thus it can be
decided that she had community-acquired pneumonia. The etiology for this type of
pneumonia includes various bacteria, such as Streptococcus sp., Pneumococcus sp.,
Mycoplasma sp., and Haemophilus influenzae; various viruses such as influenza virus,
adenovirus and various others; and some fungus such as Blastomyces, Histoplasma and
Coccidiodes (Jain and Bhardwaj, 2019).
Marrie already has an asthma condition, which normally presents with a symptom of
respiratory distress due to inflammation at the lower respiratory tract. Thus this additional
pneumonia condition in her presents with the risk of severe respiratory distress condition in
her (Sattar and Sharma, 2019).
The patient should be treated with broad-spectrum antibiotics to manage the pneumonia
condition in her along with being careful with the fact that her asthma condition does not get
triggered, to avoid the severity of her symptoms. (Postma et al. 2015).
Answer 3.

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The main bodily function that is affected by this pneumonia condition in the patient is
the respiration at the initial stage (Jain and Bhardwaj, 2019).
The pneumonia condition is associated with fluid build-up inside the lungs, and thus
the normal function of the lungs is impaired. As a result, there is a lower supply of oxygen
through the blood to all the organs. That is the reason for the patient to experience fatigue
(Jain and Bhardwaj, 2019).
Answer 4.
The common clinical manifestations for the pneumonia condition include dyspnoea,
fever, chills, fatigue, productive cough and sometimes a pain in the chest (Htun, Sun, Chua
and Pang, 2019).
The dyspnoea condition, productive cough and pain in the chest can be considered as
the local manifestations. However, the feeling of fatigue, fever and the chills can be
considered as the systemic manifestations chest (Htun, Sun, Chua and Pang, 2019). These
manifestations mainly result from the immune system response in the body.
Answer 5.
The possible treatment options for Marie can be listed as follows,
1. The application of broad-spectrum antibiotic to treat the microbial infection of the
lungs in the patient (Postma et al. 2015).
2. The application of oxygen therapy if the SpO2 level is found to be lower than 95% in
the patient in room air (Postma et al. 2015).
The nursing goals for Marie will be successful management of her pneumonia condition
within a week along with making sure that her asthma condition does not get triggered in the
meantime.

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The expected outcome for those goals will be a lowered risk of severe respiratory distress
in the patient, along with low mortality risk in the patient (Postma et al. 2015).

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References:
Htun, T.P., Sun, Y., Chua, H.L. and Pang, J., 2019. Clinical features for diagnosis of
pneumonia among adults in primary care setting: A systematic and meta-review. Scientific
reports, 9(1), pp.1-10.
Jain, V. and Bhardwaj, A., 2019. Pneumonia Pathology. In StatPearls [Internet]. StatPearls
Publishing.
Postma, D.F., Van Werkhoven, C.H., Van Elden, L.J., Thijsen, S.F., Hoepelman, A.I.,
Kluytmans, J.A., Boersma, W.G., Compaijen, C.J., Van Der Wall, E., Prins, J.M. and
Oosterheert, J.J., 2015. Antibiotic treatment strategies for community-acquired pneumonia in
adults. New England Journal of Medicine, 372(14), pp.1312-1323.
Sattar, S.B.A. and Sharma, S., 2019. Bacterial Pneumonia.