NUR 600 Discussion 8.1: Common and Less-Common Diagnoses for the Neurologic System Essay

NUR 600 Discussion 8.1: Common and Less-Common Diagnoses for the Neurologic System Essay

NUR 600 Discussion 8.1: Common and Less-Common Diagnoses for the Neurologic System Essay

Common and Less-Common Diagnoses for the Neurologic System

One of the most prevalent neurological illnesses is headaches, which can afflict anyone at any age. While a headache often isn’t anything to be overly concerned about, if the patient’s headaches start to occur abruptly and frequently, there may be signs of an underlying issue. Severe headaches that appear out of the blue, headaches accompanied by fever, photosensitivity, and neck stiffness are all warning signs of more dangerous conditions including meningitis or cerebral hemorrhage (Filler et al., 2019). Managing chronic pain may be crippling, even though headache disorders like migraine and tension-type headaches are not life-threatening. Nowadays, there are several headache therapy choices available including NSAIDs.

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A very uncommon neuromuscular ailment that damages the nerve cells in the spinal cord and brain is ALS, often known as Lou Gehrig’s disease (Masrori & Van Damme, 2020). Although doctors are unaware of the precise origin of ALS, environmental and genetic factors are thought to play a role. Muscle twitching, stiffness, impaired speech, and breathing and swallowing issues are among the symptoms. Sadly, this ailment is challenging to identify and frequently needs a neuromuscular neurologist’s assessment.

A thorough medical history and physical examination are the first steps a healthcare professional takes to identify a nervous system problem. To diagnose a headache in an emergency, the doctor must first take a complete history and do a focused physical examination. The unilateral location, extended duration (4–72 hours), frequency, concomitant symptoms including nausea and/or vomiting, and light sensitivity are only a few of the migraine’s primary distinguishing characteristics (Anarte-Lazo et al., 2021). For ALS, a neurologic examination will evaluate the patient’s reflexes, muscular strength, and other reactions. It will also be conducted regularly to see whether symptoms such as muscle weakness, muscle atrophy, and spasticity are progressively worsening (Quinn & Elman, 2020).

References

Anarte-Lazo, E., Carvalho, G. F., Schwarz, A., Luedtke, K., & Falla, D. (2021). Differentiating migraine, cervicogenic headache and asymptomatic individuals based on physical examination findings: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders, 22(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12891-021-04595-w

Filler, L., Nimlos, P., & Akhter, M. (2019). Evaluation and Management of the Emergency Department Headache. Seminars in Neurology, 39(01), 020–026. https://doi.org/10.1055/s-0038-1677023

Masrori, P., & Van Damme, P. (2020). Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a clinical review. European Journal of Neurology, 27(10), 1918–1929. https://doi.org/10.1111/ene.14393

Quinn, C., & Elman, L. (2020). Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Other Motor Neuron Diseases. CONTINUUM: Lifelong Learning in Neurology, 26(5), 1323–1347. https://doi.org/10.1212/con.0000000000000911

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Value: 15 points

Category: Discussions, 20%

Discussion Guidelines

Initial Post

Using Chapter 17 of your Goolsby and Grubbs text, select one common diagnosis and one less-common diagnosis for the neurologic system. Describe how you would be able to differentiate them from each other in an exam.

Response Post

Reply to the initial posts of at least two classmates.

Submission

Post your initial and follow up responses and review full grading criteria on the Discussion 8.1: Common and Less-Common Diagnoses for the Neurologic System page.

Week 8: The Comprehensive Physical Exam (cont.)—Peripheral Vascular and Nervous Systems

Welcome to the eighth week of advanced physical assessment. During this week, you will continue coordinating the comprehensive physical exam. This week’s systems of focus will be the peripheral vascular system and the nervous system. You will learn how to recognize their specific anatomical landmarks, look at different exam techniques, and review proper terminology for identifying and then appropriately documenting those subjective and objective findings. You will also utilize your differential diagnoses book to help you recognize the similarities, yet uniqueness, of diagnoses specific to this week’s systems of focus.

Review a list of all items due this week in your course syllabus.

Lesson 1: The Peripheral Vascular and Nervous Systems

During this lesson, you will begin coordinating the comprehensive exam, recognizing anatomical landmarks, looking at different exam techniques, and reviewing proper terminology for objective findings. This week, you will also use your Goolsby and Grubbs textbook for the discussion question. You are not required to read the entire chapter assigned in the discussion question, but you will need to skim it for specific information.

Learning Outcomes

At the end of this lesson, you will be able to:

Begin the practice of sequencing and coordinating the comprehensive physical exam of the adult patient in the peripheral vascular and nervous systems.

Identify the anatomical landmarks of the human body in the peripheral vascular and nervous systems.
Correlate examination techniques of the peripheral vascular and nervous systems using the correct sequence and anatomical landmarks in an adult patient system.
Use correct terminology to record objective components of the physical examination findings.

Before attempting to complete your learning activities for this week, review the following learning materials:

Learning Materials

Read the following in your Bates’ Guide to Physical Examination and History Taking textbook:

Chapter 17, “Peripheral Vascular System”
Chapter 24, “Nervous System”

These readings will help you perform a peripheral vascular and neurological assessment, recognize pertinent positives and negatives related to each system, and document them appropriately.

Nursing Practice Neurological Exam

The following video demonstrates the various steps to take while performing a neurological exam.

Nursing Practice Neurological Exam Transcript