Discussion Questions on X-Ray - Essay Example

"Discussion Questions on X-Ray" is a great example of a paper on diagnostic tests. Mucor is a type of fungus with many filaments commonly found in plants, soil, vegetable,s and decomposing fruits and plant products. Its colonies that are usually white in color or beige are fast-growing with the capacity to grow to several centimeters in height in a short while and as they age, their color changes from grey to brown as spore development (Adam, Hunger, DiTomasso, & Comerci, 1994). This strain of fungi is a major cause of fungal pneumonia when the fungus infects the lungs when a patient inhales its spores. It may also be caused by conidia inhalation or when a latent infection is reactivated (Adam, Hunger, DiTomasso & Comerci, 1994). This infection leads to hematogenous dissemination in most cases particularly in the host whose immune system is compromised (Adam, Hunger, DiTomasso, & Comerci, 1994).

            There are different complications associated with this fungal pneumonia which may include the diseases disseminating from the lungs to other sites such as the brain, liver, or meninges among other places. The disease may also invade blood vessels leading to pulmonary hemoptysis (Bennett, Westbrook, Gruber, & Golomb, 2010).

            The remedial therapy for this condition primarily includes antifungal agents where the type of antifungal drug to be used has to be specific to the particular pathogen isolated or isolated clinically (Bennett, Westbrook, Gruber & Golomb, 2010). There are many antifungal treatment drugs available including 1st, 2nd, and 3rd generation triazoles, classic antibiotics, and echinocandins among others (Boelaert, De Locht, & Schneider, 2010). All these provide options to be considered for the treatment of this condition.

Question 2: Blood Test Results

            From the blood tests, there are a number of abnormalities based on the results indicated. The first abnormality is in HCO3 concentration quoted as 29 meq/dL whereas the normal arterial values should range from 18-23 meq/dL it is supposed to be. Bicarbonate is important in the blood since it helps in the catalyst reaction of dissolving hydrogen ions into the blood plasma (Basuyau, Mallet, Leroy, & Brunelle, 2004). This equilibrium plays an important role in mammalian blood acting as a buffer and when it is too much in the blood, this equilibrium is affected (Basuyau, Mallet, Leroy, & Brunelle, 2004). The other abnormality is in the constitution of hemoglobin quoted in the results as 13.7 g/dL whereas normal ranges should be between 1.8 to 2.7 g/dL. The effect of this is that it affects the normal uptake and exchange of oxygen in the blood thereby affecting the respiratory reactions within the blood cells (Basuyau, Mallet, Leroy, & Brunelle, 2004).

Question 3: Medical Treatments

            One recommended treatment for this case is by use of pharmaceutical medication that is combined in a different-type-drug-chemotherapy regimen particularly for cases where the tests indicate signs of blood abnormality (Basuyau, Mallet, Leroy, & Brunelle, 2004). The other treatment approach that can be used is using iron-containing foods which will directly go towards addressing the issue of iron deficiency anemia observed in the results (Boelaert, De Locht, & Schneider, 2010). These foods could include among others, poultry, vegetables, eggs, and cereals and the recommended dosage is at least 15mg for women and 10mg for men per day (Boelaert, De Locht, & Schneider, 2010). Thirdly, another treatment intervention can be by use of antibiotics to treat the fungal infection of the patient and limit the damage done on the lungs in the view of reducing its effects.

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