I'm having a really sped moment...Help?

Published

I know that young children can become dehydrated very easily, and as a result nausea/vomiting, and diarrhea are medical emergencies. I just can't remember if its because:

A. Their little bodies are sooo much water that when they lose it, there are devastating effects.

OR

B. They have such a low % of water in their bodies that even a losing a little can be drastic.

:cry:

Up Vote Up Vote ×

what does dehydration cause-where is the majoity of water located in the body?-what systems are affected-what lab values are affected-

-what do you look for (assessment)

-what problems are there as a whole-think big picture{holistically}(diagnosis)

-what do you anticipate MD ordering-what can you do to help=interventions to be done (plan/intervention)

-how do you know they were effective (eval)-- why?

what nursing dx fit the big picture...

nursing process +pathophys is your friend--hth and gets the ball rolling! :)

Up Vote Up Vote ×
what does dehydration cause-where is the majoity of water located in the body?-what systems are affected-what lab values are affected-

-what do you look for (assessment)

-what problems are there as a whole-think big picture{holistically}(diagnosis)

-what do you anticipate MD ordering-what can you do to help=interventions to be done (plan/intervention)

-how do you know they were effective (eval)-- why?

what nursing dx fit the big picture...

nursing process +pathophys is your friend--hth and gets the ball rolling! :)

Alright Socrates, thanks for the 20 questions but you didn't answer mine. :up:...:down:

Up Vote Up Vote ×

nice. when you can answer these, you can answer your own question. hope this helps :)

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Geriatrics, LTC.

a "sped" moment?

Up Vote Up Vote ×
nice. when you can answer these, you can answer your own question. hope this helps :)

Sorry, doesn't help, I know dehydration causes hypovolemia, which raises the blood viscosity decreasing the fluid in the blood which deprives the brain and muscles of oxygen and can cause headaches and cramps. The body can go into hypovolemic shock and the blood pressure will drop as the heart rate and respiratory rate go up. I know most of the body's fluid 2/3 is in the intracellular fluid and that water is abundant in most parts of the body except adipose tissue which is less than 10%. Virtually all systems are affected. Labs include Specific gravity, serum osmolality, Na, Urinalysis.

-what do you look for (assessment) skin turgor, mucous membranes, RR, HR, BP

-what problems are there as a whole-think big picture{holistically}(diagnosis) Loss of Conciousness,

-what do you anticipate MD ordering-what can you do to help=interventions to be done (plan/intervention) N/S 1000cc x how ever many bags you need.

-how do you know they were effective (eval)-- why? pt improves.

Still don't understand how this is supposed to help me figure out if a baby has more or less water than a grown up.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
a "sped" moment?

"SPED" derived from "special" and "education", I thought it was a pretty common term.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

If memory serve from my peds class, babies bodies have a higher % of water so a lose causes dehydration quickly. The elderly have less water than a younger adult so they get dehydrated because the have less to spare.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

oops

+higher metabolic rate

+ larger BSA

:)

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Join the Discussion