HCS 330 Complete Course

HCS 330 Week 1 DQs - 1, 2, & 3.docx

HCS 330 Week 1 DQS

Discussion Questions 1

What are the similarities and differences in how children and older people contract and react to infectious diseases?

When discussing the concept of how one becomes infected by a disease one must understand that the chances and frequency of one becoming infected depends significantly on the environment in which the individual frequents and/or lives, genetics, diet, and other factors. For example, young children are acceptable to diseases such as the common cold, mono, and the flu bug because these illnesses at times are present at his or her schools or daycare. Whereas older individuals unlike younger children may be more likely to contract pneumonia, MRSA, and/or urinary tract infections because they may be living in a home or group community.

When discussing the reactions of both children and older individuals in accordance to infectious diseases many of the symptoms will be the same such as that of running a fever, having a persistent cough, or diarrhea. However, the way that the body fights these diseases can be different. For example, as an individual grows older his or her immune system will have built up a resistance too many diseases but the older individual may still suffer from Immunosenescence. Which in turn can decrease an older individual’s ability to fight off the contraction of infectious diseases, making them more severe because the immune defenses within the individual’s body have decreased (Northwestern University, 1999)? A child on the other hand unlike that of the older individual has not built up immunity to many viruses but instead has a strong system. Therefore, although they may be more likely to contract the common cold more than once in a short time period, in most cases the disease and/or virus will not be as severe and can be fought off with the use of antibiotics and vaccinations more successfully.

References

Northwestern University. (1999). Infectious Diseases. Retrieved on March 12, 2010, from http://www.galter.northwestern.edu/geriatrics/chapters/infectious_diseases.cfm

Discussion Question 2

What is the difference between disease and illness?

When one considers the difference between what is an illness and what is a disease there are a few factors that can be looked at in order to distinguish the two. Although an illness and a disease can cause an individual to have similar feelings when it comes to pain or discomfort an illness has no underlining reason for the feelings whereas a disease does (Differences Between, 2010). When one is feeling ill, it means that the individual is in a state of poor health but it does not conclude that the individual is suffering from anything other than a feeling.

However, when one is suffering from a disease it means that the individual in question has suffered from as stated by Dictionary.com (2010), “A disordered or incorrectly functioning organ, part, structure, or system of the body resulting from the effect of genetic or developmental errors, infection, poisons, nutritional deficiency or imbalance, toxicity, or unfavorable environmental factors; illness; sickness; ailment” (para 1). In some cases, illnesses are indications that one is suffering from a disease but the symptoms caused by an illness are independent and can also have no connection to a disease. Just because an individual has a disease does not mean that they are always going to suffer from the feelings of poor health but when one is suffering from an illness they are most likely going to feel the symptoms associated with the illness that they are suffering from.

References