Western Governors University. C 155 - Patho-Pharmacological Foundations for Advanced Nursing Practice. Essay.

Western Governors University. C 155 - Patho-Pharmacological Foundations for Advanced Nursing Practice. Essay. A. Investigate one of the following disease processes: traumatic brain injury, depression, obesity, asthma, or heart failure. A1. Analyze the pathophysiology of the disease process you selected in part A. Obesity. Obesity is a complex disease that involves the endocrine and metabolic systems of the body. Obesity is an increase in body adipose tissue and an endocrine and metabolic disorder that has become epidemic worldwide (McCance & Huether, 2019, Ch. 23). Calorie intake that exceeds caloric output leads to obesity. According to McCance, Ch. 23, It is projected that 42% of people in the US will be obese by 2030. The pathophysiology of obesity is complex and has many different interactions with hormones and neurotransmitters in the human body. The cellular basis of obesity is the adipocyte cell. Most adipocytes are white. There are also brown and beige adipocytes. When there is positive energy balance, excess fat is stored in mature white adipocytes. According to (McCance & Huether, 2019), the arcuate nucleus (ARC) in the hypothalamus regulates food intake and energy metabolism. This is accomplished by “balancing the opposing effects of two sets of neurons.” (McCance & Huether, 2019, Chapter 23). Many hormones and neuropeptides influence eating. They are: the Orexins (appetite stimulants): Neuropeptide Y (NPY), Melanin-concentrating hormone (MCH), Agouti-related protein (AgRP), Ghrelin, Galanin, Orexins A and B, Endocannabinoids, Cortisol, and the Anorexins (Appetite Suppressants): Leptin, Insulin, Cholecystokinin (CCK), Glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1), Peptide YY (PYY), Corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF), Urocortin (a CRF satiety signaling hormone), Cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript (CART), Alpha- melanocyte-stimulating hormone (α-MSH), Bombesin, Serotonin, Calcitonin.