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The presented case study examines a relatively common situation in tropical locations that have populations of malaria-carrying mosquitos. The case study describes how a 15-year-old boy named Mustafa experienced vomiting, tremors, shakiness, and seizures. He is often stung by mosquitos at night, which prevents his sleep. Due to the possibility of a malaria infection, Mustafa’s physician performed lab analyses on him. The presence of malaria was not confirmed. Another factor in the case study is that the village is located in a rural area and has a river flowing through it. The village is often sprayed with DDT to reduce the population of mosquitos. Mustafa experienced no symptoms before DDT spraying began. The last piece of information the study presents is that the general practitioner that examined Mustafa could not diagnose his symptoms. This paper will examine the main issues of this case study, analyze them, and recommend solutions to this issue.
Identification of Main Issues
The main issues that the boy experiences are the symptoms of his condition. Mustafa experiences vomiting, tremors, shakiness, and seizures. These symptoms can be highly uncomfortable for the patient, especially before reaching maturity. The difficulty that his general practitioner experienced in developing a viable diagnosis is related to the fact that these issues are commonly encountered in various conditions, including complications from medical use, diseases, and many others. However, the evidence presented in the case study should be enough to analyze and present a preliminary diagnosis of the patient’s condition.
The second issue lies in the lack of malaria bacteria in the lab results of Mustafa. Malaria is endemic to Upper Egypt, and the village of Mustafa experiences an increased number of mosquito bites, which may lead to an increased occurrence rate of the malaria cases. This is why the first reaction of the general practitioner was to test the patient for malaria. The results were negative. This development is likely to be found when the symptoms are analyzed, and the preliminary diagnosis is presented.
Analysis and Evaluation of Main Issues
To fully understand the issues presented by the case study, it is important to analyze all the available information and connect it to outcomes that may be related to this situation. The study presents the following clues for the analysis. The first is the set of symptoms that Mustafa experiences. They include vomiting, tremors, shakiness, and seizures. The second clue is that he only began experiencing them when the municipality began spraying DDT over the village area. The third clue is that the village is located on a river and possibly uses it as a water resource. It is distinctly possible that Mustafa became exposed to a dangerous concentration of DDT either by ingesting it through the water supply, which became at least partially polluted through the use of pesticide, by ingesting food which was cleaned with polluted water or through inhaling it during the period of spraying.
DDT is an extremely controversial pesticide that was commonly used after World War II in the United States. Initially, its harmful nature was either unknown or downplayed by those who invented it. DDT was mainly used to control the development of malaria and typhus among civilian populations. However, with time this issue became much dire as the toxicity of the pesticide was revealed to the public. By 1972, the United States banned the use of DDT in the country. However, it is still used in some countries that do not share the same regulations. The issue likely comes from the ingestion of the pesticide because the symptoms that Mustafa experiences are similar to the common symptoms of pesticide poisoning. Outside of the ones presented in the case study, he may begin experiencing headaches, weakness, and dizziness. This is why the initial lab results did not show the presence of malaria. It was never related to the case (Frumkin, 2016).
Recommendations on Solutions
A variety of recommendations may be given to resolve this situation. One of the most important is to make sure that the patient is not at risk of respiratory failure as it is considered one of the most common causes of death during pesticide ingestion. The next step would be to use gastric lavage to prevent the patient from possibly dying from gastric contamination. This could be done through the application of multiple doses of activated charcoal. This procedure should be performed carefully, however. The improper application of it could lead to ineffective treatment. One of the most effective treatments includes the use of antidotes for pesticides, such as Atropine. The doses presented by various documentation vary depending on the patient. However, if the antidote is available, it should be used due to the high risk of death (Lekei, Ngowi & London 2014).
Conclusion
The case study presents a difficult case where outside information should be examined and the patient’s condition. However, it also presented all the information required to find a preliminary diagnosis for the patient. It showcases that a nurse’s work often has to consider the environment of the patient and their condition. The early assumption of the general practitioner was incorrect, and if it was not for the patient’s previous history, treatment could have come too late.
Reference List
Frumkin, H (ed.) 2016, Environmental health: from global to local, 3rd edn, Jossey-Bass, a Wiley brand, San Francisco, CA.
Lekei, EE, Ngowi, AV & London, L 2014, ‘Farmers’ knowledge, practices and injuries associated with pesticide exposure in rural farming villages in Tanzania’, BMC Public Health, vol. 14, no. 1, pp. 1–14.
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