Joanne is a 46 year old woman who has been admitted to the Medical Assessment and Planning Unit
(MAPU) with the following signs and symptoms: temperature 39.5˚C, pale with rigors, pulse (HR) 112
per minute, shortness of breath – respiratory rate (RR) 18-20 per minute, oxygen saturation (SpO2)
92% on room air, and changes in consciousness including increased sleeping and reduced mental
acuity with eGFR reduced by 50%. The provisional diagnosis is sepsis related to glomerulonephritis.
In up to 500 words,
i) describe the inflammatory response mechanisms of Joanne’s signs and symptoms;
ii) describe the cellular and pathophysiological mechanisms of Joanne’s sepsis including the acute
and chronic manifestations of these effects on the heart, circulation, brain, lungs and kidney.
