NURS 6501 Knowledge Check Concepts of Neurological and Musculoskeletal Disorders

Sample Answer for NURS 6501 Knowledge Check Concepts of Neurological and Musculoskeletal Disorders Included After Question

In this exercise, you will complete a 10- to 20-essay type question Knowledge Check to gauge your understanding of this module’s content.

Possible topics covered in this Knowledge Check include:

    • Stroke
    • Multiple sclerosis
    • Transient Ischemic Attack
    • Myasthenia gravis
    • Headache
    • Seizure disorders
    • Head injury
    • Spinal cord injury
    • Inflammatory diseases of the musculoskeletal system
    • Osteoporosis
    • Osteopenia
    • Bursitis
    • Tendinitis
    • Gout
    • Lyme Disease
    • Spondylosis
    • Fractures
    • Parkinson’s
    • Alzheimer’s

Three basic bone-formations:

    • Osteoblasts
    • Osteocytes
    • Osteoclasts

Photo Credit: Getty Images/Science Photo Libra

Complete the Knowledge Check By Day 7 of Week 7

To complete this Knowledge Check:

Module 5 Knowledge Check

Next Week

To go to the next week:

Week 8

A Sample Answer For the Assignment: NURS 6501 Knowledge Check Concepts of Neurological and Musculoskeletal Disorders

Title: NURS 6501 Knowledge Check Concepts of Neurological and Musculoskeletal Disorders

Anatomists often use the analogy of a house to explain the human body, with skeletal systems, respiratory systems, and circulatory systems represented as a home’s framing structure, ventilation, and piping, respectively. Such analogies further emphasize the point that relationships between systems can result in complications when issues arise in one system.

With hundreds of diseases that can impact the brain, spine, and nerves, neurological disorders represent a complicated array of issues that present significant health concerns. Disorders such as strokes and Parkinson’s disease not only affect the nervous system, however; they can have secondary impacts in other areas, especially the musculoskeletal system.

This week, you examine fundamental concepts of neurological disorders. You explore common disorders that impact these systems and you apply the key terms and concepts that help communicate the pathophysiological nature of these issues to patients.

It is no coincidence that the neurological system and the musculoskeletal system share both anatomical, physiological, and functional connectivity. This structure-function relationship between the neuronal and muscular topology is responsible for influencing the disease process, the pathogenesis, presentation, diagnostic formulation, and treatment of both systems. Therefore, an understanding of the symptoms of alterations in neurological and musculoskeletal systems is a critical step in diagnosis and treatment and helps in educating the affected patients. This paper provides an account of the interplay between the neurological and the musculoskeletal system, how the racial and ethnic variables impact the physiological functioning, and how these processes interact to affect the patient. 

 

Pathophysiologic Processes That Would Account for The Patient Presenting These Symptoms 

Conspicuously, the patient has a history of hypertension and smoking that form the basis of his clinical symptoms including left-sided weakness of both the upper and lower limbs and a mild left facial droop. These features suggest a stroke. Hypertension is a well-established cause of stroke through various mechanisms that include acceleration of the arteriosclerotic process in the cerebral arteries thus increasing the risk of stenosis, embolism, and consequently infarction. Furthermore, high intravascular pressure within the cerebral arteries leads to considerable damage to the endothelial lining and alteration of the smooth muscle function (Wajngarten & Silva, 2019). This endothelial damage and altered blood cell-endothelium interaction lead to the formation of local thrombi, ischemia, and cerebral infarction whereas smooth muscle cell degeneration leads to intracerebral hemorrhages.  

Smoking on the other hand is associated with an increased risk of developing a stroke. According to Pan et al. (2019) smokers have an increased risk of overall stroke compared with nonsmokers, with a pooled odds ratio of 1.61 (95% CI: 1.34–1.93). Tobacco smoke contains a lot of chemicals that include nicotine, carbon monoxide, and cyanide among many others. These chemicals increase the risk of developing atherosclerosis, platelet aggregation, hypertension, low levels of high-density cholesterol, and high levels of low-density cholesterol. A complex and multifactorial interaction of the abovementioned factors leads to impaired vascular function resulting in both cardiovascular compromise and cerebral embolism and infarction.

NURS 6501 Knowledge Check Concepts of Neurological and Musculoskeletal Disorders
NURS 6501 Knowledge Check Concepts of Neurological and Musculoskeletal Disorders

Racial/Ethnic Variables That May Impact Physiological Functioning 

Generally, evidence shows that a racial disparity exists in the presentation of this physiological process, affecting more blacks as compared to whites. According to a study by Howard et al. (2019), the black individuals aged between 45 and 64 years had a 3-fold increase of developing stroke as compared with the whites. Black individuals have a higher preponderance of stroke because of their high risk to develop metabolic conditions such as diabetes mellitus, hypertension, obesity, hypercholesterolemia, and smoking (Tong et al., 2021). 

How These Processes Interact to Affect the Patient 

Neurological and musculoskeletal processes work hand in hand. Every movement the body makes requires communication between the brain and the muscles. Consequently, a pathologic process affecting the neurological process can lead to musculoskeletal manifestations such as hemiplegia, muscle spasms, muscle atrophy, and muscle pain among others. For instance, chronic musculoskeletal pain is principally considered a nervous system disorder as a result of nervous system plasticity (George & Bishop, 2018). Similarly, several factors such as smoking, hypertension, aging, and racial variables impact these physiologic systems resulting in an inherent complexity of interactions that affect patient functioning. 

Conclusion 

Musculoskeletal and neurological systems are correlated. Nurses must assess both systems at a given point for effective diagnosis and treatment. It is also elemental to educate the patient concerning modifiable risk factors such as smoking and hypertension that result in occurrences that limit the functioning of the musculoskeletal and neurological systems. 

 

References 

George, S. Z., & Bishop, M. D. (2018). Chronic musculoskeletal pain is a nervous system disorder… now what? Physical Therapy, 98(4), 209–213. https://doi.org/10.1093/ptj/pzy002 

Howard, V. J., Madsen, T. E., Kleindorfer, D. O., Judd, S. E., Rhodes, J. D., Soliman, E. Z., Kissela, B. M., Safford, M. M., Moy, C. S., McClure, L. A., Howard, G., & Cushman, M. (2019). Sex and race differences in the association of incident ischemic stroke with risk factors. JAMA Neurology, 76(2), 179–186. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamaneurol.2018.3862 

Pan, B., Jin, X., Jun, L., Qiu, S., Zheng, Q., & Pan, M. (2019). The relationship between smoking and stroke: A meta-analysis: A meta-analysis. Medicine, 98(12), e14872. https://doi.org/10.1097/MD.0000000000014872 

Tong, X., Schieb, L., George, M. G., Gillespie, C., Merritt, R. K., & Yang, Q. (2021). Racial/ethnic and geographic variations in long-term survival among Medicare beneficiaries after acute ischemic stroke. Preventing Chronic Disease, 18(200242), E15. https://doi.org/10.5888/pcd18.200242 

Wajngarten, M., & Silva, G. S. (2019). Hypertension and stroke: Update on treatment. European Cardiology, 14(2), 111–115. https://doi.org/10.15420/ecr.2019.11.1 

 

Learning Objectives

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Students will:

  • Analyze concepts and principles of pathophysiology across the lifespan

Learning Resources

Required Readings (click to expand/reduce)

 McCance, K. L. & Huether, S. E. (2019). Pathophysiology: the biologic basis for disease in adults and children (8th ed.). St. Louis, MO: Mosby/Elsevier.

  • Chapter 15: Structure and Function of the Neurologic System
  • Chapter 16: Pain, Temperature Regulation, Sleep, and Sensory Function (stop at Sleep); Summary Review
  • Chapter 17: Alterations in Cognitive Systems, Cerebral Hemodynamics, and Motor Function (start at Acute confusional states and delirium) (stop at Alterations in neuromotor functions); (Parkinson’s Disease); Summary Review
  • Chapter 18: Disorders of the Central and Peripheral Nervous Systems and the Neuromuscular Junction (stop at Degenerative disorders of the spine); (start at Cerebrovascular disorders) (stop at Tumors of the central nervous system); Summary Review
  • Chapter 44: Structure and Function of the Musculoskeletal System (stop at Components of muscle function); Summary Review
  • Chapter 45: Alterations of Musculoskeletal Function (stop at Bone tumors); (start at Disorders of joints); Summary Review
  • Chapter 47: Structure, Function, and Disorders of the Integument (section on Lyme Disease)

Chin, L. S. (2018). Spinal cord injuries. Retrieved from https://emedicine.medscape.com/article/793582-overview#a4

Required Media (click to expand/reduce)

Module 5 Overview with Dr. Tara Harris 

Dr. Tara Harris reviews the structure of Module 5 as well as the expectations for the module. Consider how you will manage your time as you review your media and Learning Resources throughout the module to prepare for your Knowledge Check and your Assignment. (3m)

Khan Academy. (2019b). Ischemic stroke . Retrieved from https://www.khanacademy.org/science/health-and-medicine/circulatory-system-diseases/stroke/v/ischemic-stroke 

Note: The approximate length of the media program is 8 minutes.

Osmosis.org. (2019, June 12). Osteoporosis  – causes, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, pathology [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jUQ_tt_zJDo 

Note: The approximate length of the media program is 9 minutes.

Online Media from Pathophysiology: The Biologic Basis for Disease in Adults and Children

In addition to this week’s media, it is highly recommended that you access and view the resources included with the course text, Pathophysiology: The Biologic Basis for Disease in Adults and Children. Focus on the videos and animations in Chapters 15, 16, 18, and sections of Chapters 44 and 45 that relate to the neurological and musculoskeletal systems. Refer to the Learning Resources in Week 1 for registration instructions. If you have already registered, you may access the resources at https://evolve.elsevier.com/

A Sample Answer 2 For the Assignment: NURS 6501 Knowledge Check Concepts of Neurological and Musculoskeletal Disorders

Title: NURS 6501 Knowledge Check Concepts of Neurological and Musculoskeletal Disorders

  • Question 1

Needs Grading

A 28-year-old woman presents to the clinic with a chief complaint of hirsutism and irregular menses. She describes irregular and infrequent menses (five or six per year) since menarche at 12 years of age. She began to develop dark, coarse facial hair when she was 14 years of age, but her parents did not seek treatment or medical opinion at that time. The symptoms worsened after she gained weight in college. She got married 3 years ago and has been trying to get pregnant for the last 2 years without success. Height 66 inches and weight 198. BMI 32 kg.m2. Moderate hirsutism without virilization noted.  Laboratory data reveal CMP within normal limits (WNL), CBC with manual differential (WNL), TSH 0.9 IU/L SI units (normal 0.4-4.0 IU/L SI units), a total testosterone of 65 ng/dl (normal 2.4-47 ng/dl), and glycated hemoglobin level of 6.1% (normal value ≤5.6%). Based on this information, the APRN diagnoses the patient with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) and refers her to the Women’s Health APRN for further workup and management.

Question 1 of 2:

What is the pathogenesis of PCOS? 

Selected Answer: There is a direct correlation between the pathophysiology of PCOS, the action of LH, predisposition to hyperandrogenism, and insulin resistance. A common theory that explains the pathogenesis of PCOS   highlights that, resistance to insulin usually suppresses the synthesis of globulin, a sex-binding hormone, increasing the synthesis of ovarian and adrenal androgens which increases the levels of androgens, aggravating hyperandrogenism. Although the main characteristic feature of PCOS is a hyperandrogenic state, in most cases, hyperinsulinemia, glucose intolerance and insulin resistance run parallel exacerbating the hyperandrogenic state, worsening the symptoms and signs of PCOS.
Correct Answer: The pathogenesis of PCOS has been linked to altered luteinizing hormone (LH) action, insulin resistance, and a possible predisposition to hyperandrogenism. One theory maintains that underlying insulin resistance exacerbates hyperandrogenism by suppressing synthesis of sex hormone–binding globulin and increasing adrenal and ovarian synthesis of androgens, thereby increasing androgen levels. These androgens then lead to irregular menses and physical manifestations of hyperandrogenism. The hyperandrogenic state is a cardinal feature of PCOS but glucose intolerance/insulin resistance and hyperinsulinemia often run parallel to and markedly aggravate the hyperandrogenic state, thus contributing to the severity of signs and symptoms of PCOS.
Response Feedback: [None Given]
  • Question 2

Needs Grading

A 28-year-old woman presents to the clinic with a chief complaint of hirsutism and irregular menses. She describes irregular and infrequent menses (five or six per year) since menarche at 12 years of age. She began to develop dark, coarse facial hair when she was 14 years of age, but her parents did not seek treatment or medical opinion at that time. The symptoms worsened after she gained weight in college. She got married 3 years ago and has been trying to get pregnant for the last 2 years without success. Height 66 inches and weight 198. BMI 32 kg.m2. Moderate hirsutism without virilization noted.  Laboratory data reveal CMP within normal limits (WNL), CBC with manual differential (WNL), TSH 0.9 IU/L SI units (normal 0.4-4.0 IU/L SI units), a total testosterone of 65 ng/dl (normal 2.4-47 ng/dl), and glycated hemoglobin level of 6.1% (normal value ≤5.6%). Based on this information, the APRN diagnoses the patient with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) and refers her to the Women’s Health APRN for further workup and management.

Question 2 of 2:

 

How does PCOS affect a woman’s fertility or infertility? 

Selected Answer: The main cause of infertility in women with PCOS are problems in ovulation. Ovulation may be hindered by increased production of testosterone or failure of ovarian follicles to mature. When hormones fail to balance, an individual may experience irregular ovulation and menstruation. Since the main characteristic feature in the pathology of PCOS is a hyperandrogenic state, in excess, androgens   affect the growth of follicles while insulin suppresses apoptosis which declines follicular growth. There are also dysfunctions that occur in the development of ovarian follicles. In other instances, inappropriate secretion of gonadotropin triggers the start of a vicious cycle which perpetuates anovulation.
Correct Answer: Ovulation problems are usually the primary cause of infertility in women with PCOS. Ovulation may not occur due to an increase in testosterone production or because follicles on the ovaries do not mature. Due to unbalanced hormones, ovulation and menstruation can be irregular. A hyperandrogenic state is a cardinal feature in the pathogenesis of PCOS. Excessive androgens affect follicular growth, and insulin affects follicular decline by suppressing apoptosis and enabling follicle to persist. There is dysfunction in ovarian follicle development. Inappropriate gonadotropin secretion triggers the beginning of a vicious cycle that perpetuates anovulation.
Response Feedback: [None Given]

Lopes Write Policy

For assignments that need to be submitted to Lopes Write, please be sure you have received your report and Similarity Index (SI) percentage BEFORE you do a “final submit” to me.

Once you have received your report, please review it. This report will show you grammatical, punctuation, and spelling errors that can easily be fixed. Take the extra few minutes to review instead of getting counted off for these mistakes.

Review your similarities. Did you forget to cite something? Did you not paraphrase well enough? Is your paper made up of someone else’s thoughts more than your own?

Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for tips on improving your paper and SI score.

Late Policy

The university’s policy on late assignments is 10% penalty PER DAY LATE. This also applies to late DQ replies.

Please communicate with me if you anticipate having to submit an assignment late. I am happy to be flexible, with advance notice. We may be able to work out an extension based on extenuating circumstances.

If you do not communicate with me before submitting an assignment late, the GCU late policy will be in effect.

I do not accept assignments that are two or more weeks late unless we have worked out an extension.

As per policy, no assignments are accepted after the last day of class. Any assignment submitted after midnight on the last day of class will not be accepted for grading.

Communication

Communication is so very important. There are multiple ways to communicate with me:

Questions to Instructor Forum: This is a great place to ask course content or assignment questions. If you have a question, there is a good chance one of your peers does as well. This is a public forum for the class.

Individual Forum: This is a private forum to ask me questions or send me messages. This will be checked at least once every 24 hours.

Important information for writing discussion questions and participation

Welcome to class

Hello class and welcome to the class and I will be your instructor for this course. This is a -week course and requires a lot of time commitment, organization, and a high level of dedication. Please use the class syllabus to guide you through all the assignments required for the course. I have also attached the classroom policies to this announcement to know your expectations for this course. Please review this document carefully and ask me any questions if you do. You could email me at any time or send me a message via the “message” icon in halo if you need to contact me. I check my email regularly, so you should get a response within 24 hours. If you have not heard from me within 24 hours and need to contact me urgently, please send a follow up text to

I strongly encourage that you do not wait until the very last minute to complete your assignments. Your assignments in weeks 4 and 5 require early planning as you would need to present a teaching plan and interview a community health provider. I advise you look at the requirements for these assignments at the beginning of the course and plan accordingly. I have posted the YouTube link that explains all the class assignments in detail. It is required that you watch this 32-minute video as the assignments from week 3 through 5 require that you follow the instructions to the letter to succeed. Failure to complete these assignments according to instructions might lead to a zero. After watching the video, please schedule a one-on-one with me to discuss your topic for your project by the second week of class. Use this link to schedule a 15-minute session. Please, call me at the time of your appointment on my number. Please note that I will NOT call you.

Please, be advised I do NOT accept any assignments by email. If you are having technical issues with uploading an assignment, contact the technical department and inform me of the issue. If you have any issues that would prevent you from getting your assignments to me by the deadline, please inform me to request a possible extension. Note that working fulltime or overtime is no excuse for late assignments. There is a 5%-point deduction for every day your assignment is late. This only applies to approved extensions. Late assignments will not be accepted.

If you think you would be needing accommodations due to any reasons, please contact the appropriate department to request accommodations.

Plagiarism is highly prohibited. Please ensure you are citing your sources correctly using APA 7th edition. All assignments including discussion posts should be formatted in APA with the appropriate spacing, font, margin, and indents. Any papers not well formatted would be returned back to you, hence, I advise you review APA formatting style. I have attached a sample paper in APA format and will also post sample discussion responses in subsequent announcements.

Your initial discussion post should be a minimum of 200 words and response posts should be a minimum of 150 words. Be advised that I grade based on quality and not necessarily the number of words you post. A minimum of TWO references should be used for your initial post. For your response post, you do not need references as personal experiences would count as response posts. If you however cite anything from the literature for your response post, it is required that you cite your reference. You should include a minimum of THREE references for papers in this course. Please note that references should be no more than 5 years old except recommended as a resource for the class. Furthermore, for each discussion board question, you need ONE initial substantive response and TWO substantive responses to either your classmates or your instructor for a total of THREE responses. There are TWO discussion questions each week, hence, you need a total minimum of SIX discussion posts for each week. I usually post a discussion question each week. You could also respond to these as it would count towards your required SIX discussion posts for the week.

I understand this is a lot of information to cover in 5 weeks, however, the Bible says in Philippians 4:13 that we can do all things through Christ that strengthens us. Even in times like this, we are encouraged by God’s word that we have that ability in us to succeed with His strength. I pray that each and every one of you receives strength for this course and life generally as we navigate through this pandemic that is shaking our world today. Relax and enjoy the course!

Hi Class,

Please read through the following information on writing a Discussion question response and participation posts.

Contact me if you have any questions.

Important information on Writing a Discussion Question

  • Your response needs to be a minimum of 150 words (not including your list of references)
  • There needs to be at least TWO references with ONE being a peer reviewed professional journal article.
  • Include in-text citations in your response
  • Do not include quotes—instead summarize and paraphrase the information
  • Follow APA-7th edition
  • Points will be deducted if the above is not followed

Participation –replies to your classmates or instructor

  • A minimum of 6 responses per week, on at least 3 days of the week.
  • Each response needs at least ONE reference with citations—best if it is a peer reviewed journal article
  • Each response needs to be at least 75 words in length (does not include your list of references)
  • Responses need to be substantive by bringing information to the discussion or further enhance the discussion. Responses of “I agree” or “great post” does not count for the word count.
  • Follow APA 7th edition
  • Points will be deducted if the above is not followed
  • Remember to use and follow APA-7th edition for all weekly assignments, discussion questions, and participation points.
  • Here are some helpful links
  • Student paper example
  • Citing Sources
  • The Writing Center is a great resource