When Hypertension and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Occur Simultaneously

Case Study
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Case Study
For the medical professionals, it is common that they will have a chance to treat a patient who is suffering from more than one disease or condition. In some cases, it is a disease and a condition. This is quite common and there is need for the medical professionals to come up with the best treatment plan that will ensure that, none of the patent's needs are left unattended. It is also crucial that the interventions employed do not worsen the patient's conditions, health status and wellbeing. This paper addressed a case were hypertension and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) occur simultaneously. The patient in reference is a male aged 81 years, who was admitted to hospital on 20th August, 2016. This patient has attained college education.
Hypertension is a condition that is also referred to as High Blood Pressure. This is a common condition which is associated with the long-term force of the blood on the arterial walls causing health problems such as heart diseases (Beckerman, 2016). It can thus be considered to be a sustained elevation of the blood pressure, when considered under several different readings (Beckerman, 2016). If the systolic blood pressure of the patient is determined to be equal or above 140mmHg or in some of the cases, the diastolic blood pressure for the patient is determined to be equal to or more than 90mmHg, in such a case the patient can be said to have high blood pressure (Beckerman, 2016). Ideally, this is determined relative to the amount of blood the heart pumps and the amount of resistance in the arterial flow (Beckerman, 2016). If there is more blood being pumped relative to the small lumen of the arteries, this is may cause hypertension to occur in the long-term.
The etiology of hypertension can be classified into two, primary and secondary. Primary/essential hypertension, is a condition that develops over time as one ages and usually it is gradual (Beckerman, 2016). Secondary hypertension is always caused by an underlying condition. This type occurs suddenly and results in higher blood pressure than in primary hypertension. Some of the underlying conditions include adrenal gland tumors, kidney problems, drug abuse, thyroid problems, alcohol abuse and obstructive sleep apnea among others (Beckerman, 2016).
Some of the risk factors associated with the condition include, old age, race, family history, overweight, physical inactivity, using tobacco, too much salt, too little potassium, alcohol abuse, stress and some chronic conditions such as diabetes (Beckerman, 2016). Hypertension progresses from occasional to established state, from a long and asymptomatic period to persistent hypertension with symptoms. If it is not controlled, it could lead to complications such as heart attacks, stroke, and heart failure, weakened and narrowed arteries in the kidney, troubled memory or understanding, torn blood vessels in the eyes, metabolic syndrome and Aneurysm.
COPD is a disease with significant pulmonary impairment contributing to severity in individual’s ability to breath. The disease is preventable and treatable however it is not fully reversible. Its pulmonary component is generally characterized by a ...