Definition and Causes of Short Bowel Syndrome
The patient in this case study was immunocompromised due to Short Bowel Syndrome (SBS) which predisposed her to discitis infection. SBS is a disorder that hinders the absorption of nutrients and fluids usually after extensive small intestine resection (Tee, Wallis, & Gabe, 2011). An average person’s small intestine is 600cm long (Sundaram, Koutkia, & Apovian, 2002). In SBS, the small bowel has been shortened at least 70 percent (Sundaram et al., 2002). Surgical resection may be necessary due to a myriad of medical problems affecting the small intestines such as necrotizing enterocolitis, trauma, malignancies, Crohn’s disease, and mesenteric vascular disease (Thompson, 2014). The causative factor …show more content…
The most obvious of mechanisms is the inability of the body to properly absorb vital nutrients and vitamins that enables the immune system to perform its functions. The patient in this case study takes cyanocobalamin (vitamin B12) 1000mcg/mL by intramuscular injection one a month, magnesium sulfate by injection due to chronic hypomagnesemia, and vitamin D3 by oral capsule once a day to help manage osteopenia. According to Aranow, vitamin D not only plays a role in bone homeostasis but has been found to support the function of lymphocytes and macrophages (Aranow, 2011). A deficiency in vitamin D increases the risk of autoimmune disorders and infections (Aranow, 2011). Bharath and Hsia have reported vitamin B12 is necessary for normal hematopoiesis (Bharath & Hsia, 2015). Magnesium is a cofactor required for over 300 enzymes and not only is it essential for the immune response but must be maintained within a homeostatic range for life to exist (Jahnen-Dechent & Ketteler, 2012). The inability of the patient to absorb these essential substances and possibly others compromises her immune response and predisposes her to infections as is evident by her medical history of multiple admissions due to
The patient in this case study was immunocompromised due to Short Bowel Syndrome (SBS) which predisposed her to discitis infection. SBS is a disorder that hinders the absorption of nutrients and fluids usually after extensive small intestine resection (Tee, Wallis, & Gabe, 2011). An average person’s small intestine is 600cm long (Sundaram, Koutkia, & Apovian, 2002). In SBS, the small bowel has been shortened at least 70 percent (Sundaram et al., 2002). Surgical resection may be necessary due to a myriad of medical problems affecting the small intestines such as necrotizing enterocolitis, trauma, malignancies, Crohn’s disease, and mesenteric vascular disease (Thompson, 2014). The causative factor …show more content…
The most obvious of mechanisms is the inability of the body to properly absorb vital nutrients and vitamins that enables the immune system to perform its functions. The patient in this case study takes cyanocobalamin (vitamin B12) 1000mcg/mL by intramuscular injection one a month, magnesium sulfate by injection due to chronic hypomagnesemia, and vitamin D3 by oral capsule once a day to help manage osteopenia. According to Aranow, vitamin D not only plays a role in bone homeostasis but has been found to support the function of lymphocytes and macrophages (Aranow, 2011). A deficiency in vitamin D increases the risk of autoimmune disorders and infections (Aranow, 2011). Bharath and Hsia have reported vitamin B12 is necessary for normal hematopoiesis (Bharath & Hsia, 2015). Magnesium is a cofactor required for over 300 enzymes and not only is it essential for the immune response but must be maintained within a homeostatic range for life to exist (Jahnen-Dechent & Ketteler, 2012). The inability of the patient to absorb these essential substances and possibly others compromises her immune response and predisposes her to infections as is evident by her medical history of multiple admissions due to