Chapter 17: Sudden Illness Flashcards
What is a heart attack?
when the coronary artery becomes blocked by a buildup of plaque (cholesterol). If the plaque breaks open, a clot forms causing a heart attack.. Cardiac Arrest can occur to a heart attack.
Signs and symptoms of a heart attack
chest discomfort, sweating, light-headedness or dizziness, nausea or vomiting, numbness, aching or tingling in an arm (usually left arm), shortness of breath, weakness or fatigue especially in older adults.
Women and older adults tend to have more milder symptoms and can extend for many days leading up to a heart attack. They are likely to have flu like symptoms as well.
What do you do if someone is having a heart attack?
Have the person sit, against a wall with knees bent. Keep them calm
Call 911. Do not delay
Wait for EMS to arrive
Loosen any tight clothing, ask fi they take chest pain medication & help them take it
Help them take one adult aspirin
Monitor breathing
What is a stroke?
also known as a cerebral vascular accident (CVA); sudden interruption of blow flow to the brain. Effects of stroke are permanent because dead brain cells are not replaced.
What is a ischemic stroke?
blood vessels to the brain are narrowed ro clogged with fatty deposits called plaque. High blood pressure is a risk factor. Clot busting drugs must be given within 3 hours. Important to record the stroke.
What is a hemorrhagic stroke? What are the symptoms
blood vessel ruptures in or near the brain.
Symptoms: headache, nausea and vomiting- sudden symptoms
What is a transchemic ischemic attacl?
form of stroke that occurs when a part of the brain is deprived of oxygen rich blood to cause symptoms but not long enough to cause permannent damage. Similar symptoms of CVA, episode finished within 24 hours
Can foreshadow a serious stroke
What does FAST stand for and what is it used for?
Face droops, arm weakness, speach diffculty, time to call 911
It is used for when someone is suspected having a stroke
What is F in FAST?
face droops- aks the person to smile; abnormal- one side may not move as well as the other
What is A in FAST?
Arm weakness- Ask the person to close their eyes and raise both arms with the palms up for 10 secs. Abnormal- one arm droops down
What is S in FAST?
Speech difficulty- ask the person to repeat a simple phrase; abnormal- if they slur or uses wrong words or do not speak at all
What is T in FAST?
Time to call 911. One of these signs- high risk, All three signs= very high risk
What is the treatment for stroke?
Call 911
Monitor responsiveness and breathing; if they have fluid in the mouth place them on the left side
Do not give them food or drink
Loosen tighten clothing
Record time when stroke occurred- give to EMS
What is angina?
chest pain that results when blood flow to heart muscle is restricted. When coronary arteries supplying heart muscle with blood becomes narrow and not able to carry enough blood.
What are some signs of angina?
*could be hard to differentiate from heart attack; chest pain, pain spread to the jaw, arms and midback, lasts 3-10 minutes, shortness of breath, nausea, or sweating and anxiety
What do you do if someone has angina?
Have the person stop what they are doing and sit down. Keep them calm.
Help the person take nitroglycerin if medically prescribed. If they are dizzy then do not use it- hypotension.
If conditions do not improve after dosage or after 5 minutes call 911 and administer 2nd dosage. If EMS still has not arrived after 5 mnutes and there is no sign of improvement, help give 3rd dose.
What is Asthma?
chronic lung disease that inflames and narrows the airways; airways react & muscles constrict- aiwarways become narrow; swelllig makes it worse and cells in airway make more mucus
Allergens that cause allergy symptoms can also cause asthma
What are the two types of medications used for asthma?
Quick relief medications- inhalers; control symptoms of anxiety attacl
Long term medications help have fewer and milder attacks; not intended use for during an attack
Symptoms of asthma?
wheezing, chest tightness, shortness of breath, coughing, unable to speak complete sentences; sitting in tripod position
What do you do if someone has asthma?
Have the person sit in upright position and lean slightly forward; loosen tight clothing
Encourage them to breathe slowly and deeply through the nose and out the mouth
Ask if they have their quick relief medication; if they do help them use it; do not use someone else’s
Breathing should improve within 10-15 minutes. Additional doses may be needed- but do not go over prescribed dose
Call 911- if they turn cyanotic; dose have been exceeded and still cannot breathe; there is not improvement
Do not assume that the condition is better because there is no more wheezing
How do you use an inhaler without a spacer?
Take the cap off the inhaler & make sure the mouthpiece & spray hole is clean
Shake the inhaler 10-15 times
Without the inhaler, ask the person to take a deep breath in and then breath out all teh way
Have the person hold the inhaler upright and between their index finger and thumb
Have the person put the mouthpiece of the inhaler in their mouth, above their tongue and between their teeth and then close their lips around the inhaler
Have the person start breathing in slowly, the press down on the inhaler once while breathing in all the air they can. Then tell them to hold their breath for 5-10 seconds
Once the 5-10 seconds are up, tell the person to open their mouth and breathe out slowly. If the person needs another does of medicine, wait 1 minute before repeating the above steps.
What is COPD?
broad term applied to emphysema, chronic bronchitis, and related lung diseases. A disease that makes it hard for a person to breathe because the normal flow of air into and out of a person’s lungs is partially obstructed
What is a common cause of COPD?
smoking
What is chronic bronchitis?
chronic infection- tobacco smoke. Bronchi becoems thick, unable to stretch and partially blocked.
WHat is emphysema?
the alveoli of the lungs are partially destroyed and the lungs have lost their elasticity making it difficult for the person to exhale.
Emphysema symptoms
coughing, wheezing, and shortness of breath. Breathing is extremely difficult
COPD signs
wheezing, prominent cough and shortness of breath
How to treat COPD
Have their own medication, place them in sitting position, encourage them to and cough and if there is any acute breathing distress
What is diabetes?
a condition in which blood glucose builds up in the blood and overflows into the urine and passes through the body unused. Insulin is ineffective or lacking,
What happens if a diabetic person consumes too much glucose and not enough insulin?
high blood glucose, production of ketones and diabetic coma
What is type 1 diabtes?
childhood diabetes; requires external insulin because body is unable to produce insulin. Thin people
What is type 2 diabtes?
non- insulin dependent. Excess body weight and sedentary lifestyle- risk factors & family history May require unsulin replacement or other meds
What is gestational diabetes?
ends after baby is born. Women who had it may devlop type 2 later on. Results frm body’s resistance to insulin. Can be treated by diet, but may need insulin
What is hypoglycemia and what is it caused by?
insulin reaction; low blood glucose
Caused by too much insulin, too little or delayed food intake, vomiting, excercising more than usual, alochol or any combination. Brain is the organ at risk- uses sugar.,
Signs of hypoglycemia
responsive and can swallow, medical identiifcation tage, shaky trembling, cold clammy or moist skin, confused, light headed or dizzy, sudden hunger, nauseated, tinging or numbness in the lips, tongue and cheeks, heavy sweating
What do you do if someone has hypoglycemia?
Have them check blodo glucose level
If there is a low blood glucose,
Have the person eat 15-20g of sugar, 3-5 glucose tablets, 4 ounces of sugary drinks, or hard candies
If person has no gag reflex and cannot swallow do not give any thing
Call 911 if there is no improvement and are unable to give sugar
Severe hypoglycemia signs
may stagger, may slur speech and may not be able to follow commands, seizures
What do you do if someone has SEVERE hypoglycermia?
Calll 911 immediately
If breathing, roll on recovery postion,
Do not give food or fluids
If unsure which diabetic condition give sugar
What is a seizure?
abnormal firing or brain cells, usually resulting in jerking movements followed by an unresponsive period .
WHat is a tonic-clonic seizure?
gran mal; person becomes completely stiff or tense, with arms and legs extended. The person jers rigorously, with arms and legs contracting then relaxing in unison
What is a generalized seizure?
person has a loss of responsiveness; may foam at outh and may be incontinent. The heart beats but breathing stops. CPR can not be done when person is jerking or twitching. Lasts 60 seconds. After the convulsion phae, they can become sleepy or confused. They may lose control of bladder.
WHat is a petit mal seizure?
person becomes mentally absent and appears ot be daydreaming.
What can seizures result from?
fevers or cardiac arrest, trauma, brain trauma, meningitis, alcohol withdrawal and drug abuse.
What is epilepsy?
underlying condition that affects the delicate systems that govern how electrical energy behaves in the brain
Convulsive Seiure symptoms
sudden falling to the floor or ground, stiffening fo arm and leg muscles & jerking movement, foaming at the mouht, grinding of teeth, blue gray face and lips, eyes rolling upwards, loss of bladder and bowel control - 1-2 mins.
Noncovulsive seizure symptoms
staring, confusion or inattentiveness, frequent eye blinking, involuntary movements- very brief
What do you do if someone has a seizure?
Move objects aways
Put something soft under head (not soft fluffy pillow)
Time the seizure
Keep bystanders away
Call 911- if it lasts longers, series of seizures, breathing difficulties after seizure, person has diabetes or is pregnant, happenied in water, first known seizure, injury-related and has slow recovery
After seizure: keep airway open, monitor breathing, let them sleep, and stay with them
What is staus epilepticus and what can it lead to?
prolonged seizures over 5 minutes or two back to back seizures with a lucid interval- emergency and EMS
Can lead to brain damage, dehydration, and aspiration
