Nursing Considerations

Introduction The Coronovirus is a relatively common group of viruses believed to be responsible for a the majority of common colds. Coronavirus' are also the infectious agent responsible for the 2003 asian outbreak of SARS​1​ (Severe acute respiratory syndrome). More recently, the 2019-2020 Chinese pneumonia outbreak in Wuhan province has been traced to a newer strain of the virus known as 2019-nCoV​2​. Coronavirus as seen through an Electron Microscope Most people will be infected with a variant of…

The Trendelenburg Position is a position in which the patient is laid supine, with the head declined to an angle between 30-45 degrees. The Trendelenburg position is most often used in surgical procedures of the lower abdomen, pelvis and genitourinary system as it allows gravity to pull the abdominal contents away from the pelvis. The position is also very effective in reducing and preventing the exacerbation of both abdominal and inguinal hernias. This is because it avoids putting downward pressure on the…

The Cytokine Cascade or cytokine storm is a relatively recently described autoimmune response in which the body's immune system gets caught in a positive feedback loop leading to a runaway and potentially fatal autoimmune response. A cytokine cascade can be particularly troublesome treat as it is the normal response of a healthy immune system, and so treatment usually focusses on the active interference of the immune processes rather than treatment of the underlying infection. Cytokine cascades have been implicated in…

An imperforate hymen is a congenital disorder I which the hymen completely occludes the vaginal opening. It is one of the most common female genital tract malformations, occurring in approximately 1 in 2000 girls3. The condition arises due to a failure of the hymen to perforate during fetal development. The condition commonly goes unnoticed until adolescence when the girl passes the age of menarche5 and has not had a period (amenorrhea). Menstrual blood cannot flow freely from the vagina and backs up in the vagina…

A double uterus, otherwise known as a uterus didelphys is a congenital uterine defect causing a bifurcation of the lumen of the uterus. It is considered a very rare condition, occurring in only 0.1-0.5% of women in the US, however, this is considered under representative as many women may remain asymptomatic, resulting in nondetection of the condition. Women with the condition may experience dysmenorrhea and dyspareunia3. The majority of cases remain asymptomatic with no obvious signs of abnormality, however, some women may…