CH 6: Principles of Pathophysiology - Critical Thinking

Question 1

What are the requirements for normal cellular metabolism? What changes occur when those requirements are not met?

Answer 1

Normal metabolism requires adequate amounts of oxygen and glucose. When adequate amounts of either are not available, the body changes the process. Anaerobic metabolism occurs in low oxygen states. This inefficient form of metabolism produces less energy and far more waste products.

Question 2

Considering the requirements of normal cellular metabolism, discuss how each of the following systems and/or organs contributes to the delivery of those requirements.

Respiratory
Circulatory
Blood vessels
Blood

Answer 2

Respiratory - delivers O2 from room air to bloodstream
Circulatory - delivers O2 and glucose to cells
Blood vessels - dilate and constrict to provide pressure to move blood
Blood - components carry O2 and glucose

Question 3

You have a patient with a traumatic injury to the heart. What impact on the patient’s ability to compensate might an injury like this have?

Answer 3

The body’s ability to manage cardiac output is impaired. Cardiac injuries can limit the ability to change heart rate and stroke volume and therefore limit increases in cardiac output.

Question 4

You have a patient with an inability to control the diameter of the blood vessels (sepsis). What impact might an illness like this have on the patient’s ability to compensate?

Answer 4

A patient with a loss of tone in his blood vessels would lose the ability to control pressure within the cardiovascular system. This person could not adapt to blood loss by vasoconstrictuion. Furthermore, excessive dilation of blood vessels can drop blood pressure and cause shock.

Question 5

What might be the impact of not having enough red blood cells? How might this condition affect that patient’s ability to compensate for an illness or injury?

Answer 5

Red blood cells carry oxygen. A deficit in the number of these cells disrupts the body’s ability to move oxygen in the cardiovascular system. Under normal circumstances, this patient will have a difficult time transporting enough oxygen. In times of challenges, this deficit may seriously affect the body’s ability to compensate. A loss of red blood cells also limits the body’s ability to remove waste products such as carbon dioxide from the tissues. This can be damaging to the tissues.