NANDA Anemia
Nursing Diagnosis for Anemia
Anemia is a condition in which the number of red blood cells or their oxygen-carrying capacity is insufficient to meet physiologic needs, which vary by age, sex, altitude, smoking, and pregnancy status.
There are several types and classifications of anaemia. This is a condition in which the body lacks the amount of red blood cells to keep up with the body's demand for oxygen.
Causes of Anemia
Except for the acute form, anemia is a result of systemic toxemia and acidosis-a condition of poisons, toxins and accumulated waste products floating in the blood - and lymph-streams, and of enervation or lowered nerve-tone. There is either an accumulation of these injurious substances due to failure of eliminative organs to handle a normal amount of such products, or they are produced in such considerable quantities that even normal organs, eliminating a normal amount or more than a normal amount of eliminations can not remove them rapidly enough. They have the effect of poisoning the organs that make the blood cells, which produce a deficient amount of blood cells or altered blood cells.
The signs and symptoms of this disease are:
1. Paleness
2. Headache
3. Irritability
Symptoms of more severe iron deficiency anaemia include:
1. Dyspnea
2. Rapid heartbeat
3. Brittle hair and nails
Treatment of Anemia
Treatment should be directed at the cause of the anemia. In some cases, blood transfusions and the medication erythropoietin will correct anemia. For example, treatment for sickle cell anemia is different than treatment for a diet low in iron or folic acid. Talk to your HCP about the best treatment for the cause of your anemia. Other Treatment Injectable EPO (e.g., PROCRIT®, EPOGEN®) is an alternative to blood transfusion to treat critically ill patients with anemia. Exogenous EPO is identical to the natural hormone in its role of stimulating the bone marrow to produce red blood cells. EPO has been used safely in many clinical settings, including chronic renal failure, oncology, and surgery. In the ICU, use of EPO has been shown to reduce the amount of blood transfused by almost 50%, at the same time significantly increasing hemoglobin levels.
Nursing Diagnosis for Anemia
- Activity Intolerance
- Impaired oral mucous membrane
- Imbalanced Nutrition: Less than Body Requirements
- Constipation/Diarrhea
- Risk for Infection
- Risk for deficient fluid volume
- Deficient Knowledge regarding condition, prognosis, treatment, self-care, prevention of crisis, and discharge needs,
- Fatigue
- Fear
- Ineffective coping
- Ineffective thermoregulation.
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