8 June , 2018
Case Study
Q1:What sort of environment (hypertonic, isotonic, hypotonic) does consuming excessive amounts of pure water create in the body fluid that surrounds your cells? What effect would this have on your cells?
A1: Consuming too much water would cause your cells to become hypotonic. The cells would experience a higher than normal percentage of H2O and consequently have a smaller than normal percentage of solute. This would cause the cells to eventually flood, swell, and burst.
Q2: What types of symptoms did Jennifer, Cassandra, and James have in common? Which organ or tissue seems to have been most affected?
A2: It’s hard to say …show more content…
It can be presumed that their cause of death was hyponatremia. Hyponatremia is a “low sodium level...condition in which the amount of sodium in the blood is lower than normal (Low Sodium Level: MedlinePlus).” For Jennifer, Cassandra, and James this sodium imbalance is caused by the over in-gestation of water which caused them to experience the clear symptoms which lead to their death. Their bodies couldn't handle the amount of water they consumed in such a short amount of time. “When sodium levels...are low, water tends to enter cells (Stöppler, Hyponatremia Symptoms, Signs, Causes & Treatment), which in result causes the cells to “swell (Stöppler, Hyponatremia Symptoms, Signs, Causes & Treatment).” When the cells swell inside the brain, “it is referred to as cerebral edema (Stöppler, Hyponatremia Symptoms, Signs, Causes & Treatment).” This condition is extremely fatal because damage in the brain is a vital risk as “the pressure increases within the skull (Stöppler, Hyponatremia Symptoms, Signs, Causes & Treatment).” With the cells becoming swollen, the brain has no room and is confined which means that for Jennifer, Cassandra, and James; their bodies could not handle the inadequate balance of sodium and water in their bodies which resulted in their …show more content…
A6: Saline solution, a water and salt mixture, is used to balance osmotic pressure within a dehydrated bodyʼs cells. Because cells have a semipermeable membrane, pure water can flow in and out of the cell without maintaining balance.; it is also possible for the dehydrated cells to continue to take in the pure water until the point of rupture. Although “normal saline isnʼt very normal,” the solution is introduced to the body in an effort to return the bodyʼs Sodium (Na) levels, as well as water levels, to a relatively more normal balance. Saline solutions typically provide too much Na to the body in order to make up for all that the body has lost through the dehydration process.
Work Cited
“Blood Tests.” National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services, www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health-topics/blood-tests.
Fareed, Khaled. “Urinalysis Test Results and Interpretation of Urine Test.” Edited by William C. Shiel Jr, MedicineNet, MedicineNet, www.medicinenet.com/urinalysis/article.htm#who_is_involved_in_the_interpretation_of_urinaly sis.
Dalton, Clayton. “Why Did Sterile Salt Water Become The IV Fluid Of