MARIANO MARCOS STATE UNIVERSITY

College of Teacher Education

LESSON VI: LEARNERS WITH CHRONIC ILLNESSES

Learning Outcomes

At the end of the lesson, the student must have:

1. identified the chronic illnesses conditions
2. enumerated and described the different
chronic illnesses

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College of Teacher Education

Activating Prior Knowledge

Using the graphic organizer write words that comes into your mind if you hear the
word “chronic illnesses”.

Chronic
Illnesses

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College of Teacher Education

Content Input

Chronic Illnesses

A. Asthma
 Asthma is a chronic (long-term) condition that affects the airways in the lungs.
The airways are tubes that carry air in and out of your lungs. If you have asthma,
the airways can become inflamed and narrowed at times.
 Asthma affects people of all ages and often starts during childhood. You may
wheeze, cough, or feel tightness in your chest. These symptoms can range from
mild to severe and can happen every day or only once in a while. Certain things
can set off or worsen asthma symptoms, such as cold air. These are called
asthma triggers. When symptoms get worse, it is called an asthma attack.

Causes
The exact cause of asthma is unknown, and the causes may vary from person to person.
However, asthma is often the result of a strong response of the immune system to a
substance in the lungs. To understand asthma, it helps to understand How the Lungs
Work.

Normally, the body’s immune system helps

to fight infections. Sometimes a person’s
immune system responds to a substance in
the environment called an allergen. When
someone breathes in an allergen, such as
ragweed, the immune system in the airways
may react strongly. Other people exposed to
the same substance may not react at all.

The immune system reacts to an allergen by

creating inflammation. Inflammation makes
your airways swell and narrow and possibly produce more mucus. This can make it
harder to breathe. The muscles around the airways may also tighten, which is called a
bronchospasm. This can make it even harder to breathe.

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College of Teacher Education
Over time, the airway walls can become thicker. The image below shows how airways
narrow during asthma.

Your asthma may have been caused partly by a viral infection or allergens in the air
when you were a baby or young child. During this stage of life, your immune system is
still developing.

It’s not clear why one person reacts to an exposure while others do not. Genes seem to
play a role in making some people more susceptible to asthma.

Signs and symptoms

 Chest tightness
 Coughing, especially at night or early morning
 Shortness of breath
 Wheezing, which causes a whistling sound when you exhale

While other conditions can cause the same symptoms as asthma, the pattern of
symptoms in people who have asthma usually has some of the following characteristics.

 They come and go over time or within the same day.

 They start or get worse with viral infections, such as a cold.
 They are triggered by exercise, allergies, cold air, or hyperventilation from
laughing or crying.
 They are worse at night or in the morning

Asthma attacks, or exacerbations, are episodes that occur when symptoms get much
worse and require a change in typical treatment. These can come on gradually or
suddenly and may be life-threatening. People who have severe asthma often get asthma
attacks more often.

B. Diabetes

Diabetes is a chronic (long-lasting) health condition that affects how your body turns

food into energy.

Most of the food you eat is broken down into sugar (also called glucose) and released
into your bloodstream. When your blood sugar goes up, it signals your pancreas to
release insulin. Insulin acts like a key to let the blood sugar into your body’s cells for use
as energy.

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College of Teacher Education
If you have diabetes, your body either doesn’t make enough insulin or can’t use the
insulin it makes as well as it should. When there isn’t enough insulin or cells  stop
responding to insulin, too much blood sugar stays in your bloodstream. Over time, that
can cause serious health problems, such as heart disease, vision loss, and kidney
disease.

There isn’t a cure yet for diabetes, but losing weight, eating healthy food, and being
active can really help. Taking medicine as needed, getting diabetes self-management
education and support, and keeping health care appointments can also reduce the
impact of diabetes on your life.

Types of Diabetes

Type 1 Diabetes

Type 1 diabetes is thought to be caused by an autoimmune reaction (the body attacks

itself by mistake) that stops your body from making insulin. Approximately 5-10% of the
people who have diabetes have type 1. Symptoms of type 1 diabetes often develop
quickly. It’s usually diagnosed in children, teens, and young adults. If you have type 1
diabetes, you’ll need to take insulin every day to survive. Currently, no one knows how
to prevent type 1 diabetes.

Type 2 Diabetes

With type 2 diabetes, your body doesn’t use insulin well and can’t keep blood sugar at
normal levels. About 90-95% of people with diabetes have type 2. It develops over many
years and is usually diagnosed in adults (but more and more in children, teens, and
young adults). You may not notice any symptoms, so it’s important to get your blood
sugar tested if you’re at risk. Type 2 diabetes can be prevented or delayed with healthy
lifestyle changes, such as losing weight, eating healthy food, and being active.

Symptoms

Diabetes symptoms vary depending on how much your blood sugar is elevated. Some
people, especially those with prediabetes or type 2 diabetes, may sometimes not
experience symptoms. In type 1 diabetes, symptoms tend to come on quickly and be
more severe.

Some of the signs and symptoms of type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes are:

 Increased thirst
 Frequent urination
 Extreme hunger

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 Unexplained weight loss
 Presence of ketones in the urine (ketones are a byproduct of the breakdown of
muscle and fat that happens when there's not enough available insulin)
 Fatigue
 Irritability
 Blurred vision
 Slow-healing sores
 Frequent infections, such as gums or skin infections and vaginal infections
Type 1 diabetes can develop at any age, though it often appears during
childhood or adolescence. Type 2 diabetes, the more common type, can
develop at any age, though it's more common in people older than 40.

C. Epilepsy

Epilepsy is a chronic noncommunicable disease of the brain that affects around 50

million people worldwide. It is characterized by recurrent seizures, which are brief
episodes of involuntary movement that may involve a part of the body (partial) or the
entire body (generalized) and are sometimes accompanied by loss of consciousness and
control of bowel or bladder function.

Seizure episodes are a result of excessive electrical discharges in a group of brain cells.
Different parts of the brain can be the site of such discharges. Seizures can vary from the
briefest lapses of attention or muscle jerks to severe and prolonged convulsions.
Seizures can also vary in frequency, from less than 1 per year to several per day.

One seizure does not signify epilepsy (up to 10% of people worldwide have one seizure
during their lifetime). Epilepsy is defined as having two or more unprovoked seizures.
Epilepsy is one of the world’s oldest recognized conditions, with written records dating
back to 4000 BC. Fear, misunderstanding, discrimination and social stigma have
surrounded epilepsy for centuries. This stigma continues in many countries today and
can impact on the quality of life for people with the disease and their families.

Causes

Epilepsy is not contagious. Although many underlying disease mechanisms can lead to
epilepsy, the cause of the disease is still unknown in about 50% of cases globally. The
causes of epilepsy are divided into the following categories: structural, genetic,
infectious, metabolic, immune and unknown. Examples include:

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 brain damage from prenatal or perinatal causes (e.g. a loss of oxygen or trauma
during birth, low birth weight);
 congenital abnormalities or genetic conditions with associated brain
malformations;
 a severe head injury;
 a stroke that restricts the amount of oxygen to the brain;
 an infection of the brain such as meningitis, encephalitis or neurocysticercosis,
 certain genetic syndromes; and
 a brain tumour.

Signs and Symptoms

Characteristics of seizures vary and depend on where in the brain the disturbance
first starts, and how far it spreads. Temporary symptoms occur, such as loss of
awareness or consciousness, and disturbances of movement, sensation (including
vision, hearing and taste), mood, or other cognitive functions.

People with epilepsy tend to have more physical problems (such as fractures and
bruising from injuries related to seizures), as well as higher rates of psychological
conditions, including anxiety and depression. Similarly, the risk of premature death
in people with epilepsy is up to three times higher than in the general population,
with the highest rates of premature mortality found in low- and middle-income
countries and in rural areas.

A great proportion of the causes of death related to epilepsy, especially in low- and
middle-income countries are potentially preventable, such as falls, drowning, burns
and prolonged seizures

Three Types of Seizure

 Generalized Tonic-Clonic Seizure

It is formerly called grand mal is the most conspicuous and serious type. The
affected child has little or no warning that a seizure is about to occur; the
muscles become stiff, the child loses consciousness, and falls to the floor.
Then the entire body shakes violently as the muscles alternately contract and
relax. Saliva may be forced out of the mouth; legs and arms may jerk; and the
bladder and bowels may be emptied. After about 2 to 5 minutes, the
contractions diminish, the child either goes to sleep or regains consciousness

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in a confused or drowsy state. This type of seizure may occur as often as
several times a day or as seldom as once a year and more likely to occur
during the day than night.

 Absence Seizure

It is previously known as petit mal is far less severe than the generalized
tonic-clonic seizure but may occur more frequently, as often as 100 times per
day in some children. Usually there is a brief loss of consciousness, lasting for
a few seconds to half a minute. The child may stare blankly, flutter or blink
his/her eyes, grow pale, or drop whatever he/she is holding. Teachers
mistake him/her as daydreaming or not listening. The child may not be aware
of the seizure and no special first aid is necessary.

 Partial Seizure

Which could be complex or simple. A complex partial seizure also called

psychomotor seizure may appear as a brief period of inappropriate or
purposeless activity. The child may smack hi/her lips, walk around aimlessly,
or shout. She may appear conscious but it is not actually aware of the
behaviour. It could last from 2 to 5 minutes, after which the child has
amnesia about the entire episode. The simple partial seizure is characterized
by sudden jerking motions with no loss of consciousness. It may occur
weekly, monthly, or only once or twice a year.

Castro Ave., Laoag City, 2900 Ilocos Norte, Philippines

 [email protected]  (077) 600-2014 www.mmsu.edu.ph
 MARIANO MARCOS STATE UNIVERSITY
College of Teacher Education

Check for Understanding

Answer the following questions briefly.

1. Enumerate the three types of Seizure. Describe each of them.

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2. Describe the three chronic illnesses.

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3. What are the two types of diabetes? Enumerate the symptoms.

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4. What causes asthma among children?

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5. Enumerate at least three symptoms of each chronic illnesses (asthma, diabetes and
epilepsy).
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Castro Ave., Laoag City, 2900 Ilocos Norte, Philippines

 [email protected]  (077) 600-2014 www.mmsu.edu.ph