Different levels of the examination are required for people depending on their health status, history of illnesses, and the severity of the disease. Aging people tend to suffer the most from multiple diseases occurring simultaneously. Hypertension is one of the most frequent health complications for aging women, and chances of getting a pulmonary disease are high nowadays (Shen et al., 2016). Moreover, women with hypertension most often die from pneumonia than other comorbidities (Shen et al., 2016). To reveal these issues, a physician must perform a more detailed examination.
The combination of multiple illnesses presented in the older patient can hurt various organs, and it is crucial to find all underlying factors to give her the proper treatment. Shen et al. (2016) state that “major pathophysiologic mechanisms of hypertension include increasing cardiovascular risk factors, such as diabetes, which can increase the risk for pneumonia” (p. 7). Moreover, such multimorbidity severely decreases the quality of life and puts a strain on physical performance during a daily routine in patients with hypertension and diabetes, which further increases their vulnerability to infectious diseases (Buford, 2016). In this case, one of the patients is put at a significantly higher risk of an adverse outcome from the same condition.
Therefore, the older patient requires a comprehensive examination of an entire organism due to her age and the presented combination of diseases. It is crucial to establish the damage caused by pneumonia and factors from hypertension and diabetes that hurt its severity. Since the 24-year old patient does not show symptoms of any other illnesses at the moment, a regular problem-focused examination would suffice.
References
Buford T. W. (2016). Hypertension and aging. Ageing Research Reviews, 26, 96–111.
Shen, Y., Tian, Z., Lu, D., Huang, J., Zhang, Z., Li, X., & Li, J. (2016). Impact of pneumonia and lung cancer on mortality of women with hypertension. Scientific Reports, 6(1).