Nursing 2349 Module 10 – Written Assignment Hypothermia and Hyperthermia Worksheet

Module 10 – Written Assignment Hypothermia and Hyperthermia Worksheet Name: Breanna Ciatti Date: 6/6/2016 Complete all of your lesson materials and assigned readings. Make sure that you are focusing on: 1. The diff ...

Module 10 – Written Assignment Hypothermia and Hyperthermia Worksheet Name: Breanna Ciatti Date: 6/6/2016 Complete all of your lesson materials and assigned readings. Make sure that you are focusing on: 1. The difference between hypothermia and hyperthermia and the impact to the patient? 2. Patient education for client and family in order to avoid extreme temperature variations? You should be using complete sentences to answer the questions. Ensure that you are using correct grammar. In addition, support your answers using your textbook, course materials, credible internet resources, and scholarly journals. SkyScape is a great suggestion for assistance in completion of this assignment. All citations must be in APA format. 1 Point 1 What is the difference between hypothermia and hyperthermia and how does each one impact the patient? 2 Points Hypothermia: defined as an abnormally low core temperature, less than 95 degrees (Treas, 2013). Hypothermia impacts the patient because it causes shivering which is the body’s way of attempting to increase the temperature. In severe hypothermia the patient becomes unconscious and stops shivering; the pulse and respirations are irregular and difficult to detect (Treas, 2013). Hyperthermia: (fever) is a body temperature above normal (Treas, 2013). This impacts the patient because in hyperthermia the elevated body temperature higher than the set point. Also this impacts the patient because the hypothalamic regulation of body temperature is overwhelmed and does not reset the set point as it does in fever (Treas, 2013). This occurs because the body promotes fast heat loss to balance heat production of high environmental temperatures (Treas, 2013). When a patient is in the hyperthermic state it progresses to heat stroke. Heat stroke occurs when the body’s temperature regulation fails usually when the temperature is above 103 degrees (Treas, 2013). 2 What education can you give to your patient and family to avoid the extreme temperature variations? 2 Points This study source was downloaded by 100000831988016 from CourseHero.com on 04-14-2022 00:39:08 GMT -05:00 https://www.coursehero.com/file/16541418/module-10-ws-redo/ Module 10 – Written Assignment Hypothermia and Hyperthermia Worksheet Education to give the patient and family to avoid the extreme temperature variations would be to avoid the extreme cold or overly hot days in the extreme sunshine. A teaching point I would have for a patient who is hyperthermic state would be to use heat reduction techniques such as using cold packs and cool wash clothes. A teaching point for a patient in the hypothermic state would be to use heat increasing techniques such as hot packs on the body or hot baths. Also another teaching point to avoid these temperature variations would be to limit exposure to sick people and get vaccinated to reduce infection risks. WHAT IS THERMOREGULATION? Thermoregulation is a process to keep the body’s heat production and heat loss balanced. Thermoregulation balance is controlled by the hypothalamus of the brain. Sensory receptors in the body like the skin send messages to the hypothalamus as it recognize changes in the temperature. During heat loss our vessels constrict and blood shunts to the core of the body to keep the heart pumping and just the opposite as increased heat is needed the body shivers and releases epinephrine which increases metabolism to keep you warm. So it is essential that if our patient has any brain trauma that we maintain their body temperature accurately. WHY IS THERMOREGULATION IMPORTANT TO YOUR PATIENT? Maintaining homeostasis is the number one most important thing for a body. Thermoregulation is important to our patient because they must be aware of when they are too hot or too cold. Body temperature regulates with voluntary control. We increase our heat by putting on more layers and we decrease our heat by ice packs and removing clothes. Thermoregulation is also important to our patient because our bodies will not function if over 105 degrees so it is essential to know heat reduction techniques and vice versa if we are too cold. Another important thing is surgery; when a patient is in surgery they do not have proper brain functioning and malignant hyperthermia is common. Malignant hyperthermia is controlled with the drug dantrolene. Drugs are another problem associated with thermoregulation. Drugs have effects on the brain and cause the body to increase or decrease. It is important that our patients know the side effects of the drugs they are on and report any signs and symptoms immediately. Thermoregulation is essential for patients to understand, especially for us living in Minnesota. References Treas, L. (2013). Basic Nursing: Concepts, Skills & Reasoning. Retrieved from https://bookshelf.vitalsource.com/#/books/9780803640542/cfi/465!/4/[email protected]:55.6 This study source was downloaded by 100000831988016 from CourseHero.com on 04-14-2022 00:39:08 GMT -05:00 https://www.coursehero.com/file/16541418/module-10-ws-redo/ Module 10 – Written Assignment Hypothermia and Hyperthermia Worksheet