Sample Paper – Week 1 Discussion NURS 6501 Week 1 Discussion – Alterations in Cellular Processes Alterations in Cellular Processes

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Alterations in Cellular Processes

Considering that the patient was given naloxone in the field and became responsive and has a history of substance abuse, it can be concluded that he has been abusing opioids in large quantities. The patient could also be suffering from rhabdomyolysis. This is a syndrome that is caused by indirect or direct muscle injury. The condition develops when muscle fibers die, and their content gets released into the bloodstream. Traumatic and non-traumatic causes can cause the condition. In this case, the non-traumatic causes that could have led to rhabdomyolysis are substance abuse, which includes the use of illegal drugs and alcohol. The condition can also be caused by antipsychotics, especially when taken in large quantities (Nance & Mammen, 2015). For people who have been diagnosed with this condition, the serum and urine myoglobin levels usually are high. Genetics play a role in the development of this disease. The genetic conditions that normally predispose to this disease include channelopathies, muscular dystrophies, and metabolic myopathies (Nance, & Mammen, 2015).

The reason why the patient is experiencing the symptom of burning pain over his left hip and forearm is because of muscle injury that could have occurred in the substance abuse process leading to necrosis, as seen in the ED during the evaluation process (D’Arcy, 2019). The excessive abuse of opioids had caused the symptom of unresponsiveness.

The physiologic response in the scenario is that the patient becomes responsive after receiving naloxone. I think this response occurred because naloxone is a medication that helps in the reversal of opioid overdose. It helps bind opioid receptors, block, and reverse other opioid effects (Rzasa Lynn, & Galinkin, 2018). The medication can help restore respiration to a person whose breathing has been stopped or slowed due to overconsumption of heroin or prescription opioids. The cells that are involved in this process are the μ-opioid receptors. Another characteristic that would change the response is genetics. Some people have an opioid receptor gene with a single building block change that normally protects them against substance dependence. In contrast, the variations in genes for three dopamine receptors are associated with increased risk for opioid addiction (Chiasson-Downs, 2018).

References

Chiasson-Downs, K. (2018, April 24). Why genetics makes some people more vulnerable to opioid addiction – and protects others. Retrieved from https://theconversation.com/why-genetics-makes-some-people-more-vulnerable-to-opioid-addiction-and-protects-others-92000

D’Arcy, M. S. (2019). Cell death: a review of the major forms of apoptosis, necrosis and autophagy. Cell biology international, 43(6), 582-592.