LO4 - medical conditions

The medical conditions you need to know about are:

  • Asthma
  • Diabetes
  • Epilepsy

What the spec says

why it is important for a coach to know about any medical conditions a performer might have?

If you are a question that mentions "medical conditions" it will be worth trying to include one of the three medical conditions in your answer:

  • Asthma
  • Diabetes
  • Epilepsy

A coach needs to know about an individuals medical conditions so that they can put an EAP (Emergency Action Plan) in place so that they know what to do if an incident happens. This means the coach knows how to treat and injury if the situation calls for it and this can increase the safety of the player; thus reduces the risk of injury.

A coach can plan a session around the medical issues a performer may have or adapt for example hey might make the session easier based on the player’s capability of.

Asthma

Symptoms include

  • Coughing
  • Wheezing
  • Shortness of breath
  • Breathlessness or run out of breath
  • Difficulty breathing or heavy breathing
  • Tight chest or chest pain
  • Grey or blue lips (if severe)
  • Pale and/or clammy skin or change of skin colour
  • Difficulty speaking

Treatment of an Asthma Attack

Reassurance and them keep participant calm; stay with them. Call emergency service (phone 999) if attack is severe. Sit them down, don’t lie them down or bend them over.

Encourage them to take long, slow, steady and deep breaths. Get them away from the trigger. The asthma attack could be triggered by dust, cigarette smoke or the smell of chemicals; so try to take them to an air-conditioned environment or any place with clean air.

Give them a hot or caffeinated beverage, drinks like coffee can help to open up the airways slightly, providing some relief for an hour or two.

Use an Inhaler (asthma pump)

Diabetes

Diabetes is a chronic condition where the body is unable to use glucose properly or to control blood sugar levels. The patient could find that glucose may be found in blood and urine.

Diabetes is occurs when the body is not producing any or enough insulin and could create coma condition if not treated.

There are two types:

  • insulin dependent (type1)
    • The body (pancreas) cannot produce insulin or doesn’t have any insulin. It is genetically determined.
    • It can be controlled through taking regular insulin injections.
  • insulin resistant (type 2)
    • Insulin is not always required as the body already has some but this reduces and causes the level of sugar (glucose) in the blood to become too high.
    • It can be controlled through a good diet and regular exercise.

Symptoms:

  • High or low sugar levels
  • Increased thirst
  • Going to the toilet lots
  • Extreme tiredness, unconscious or coma-like state
  • Weight loss
  • Odd behaviour or could be mistaken for ‘drunkenness’
  • Confusion or memory loss
  • Pale / cold/ sweaty skin
  • Nausea/vomiting
  • Blurred vision
  • Dry mouth
  • Slow healing cuts/sores
  • Irritating skin/tingling skin
  • Abdominal pain
  • Trembling/shaking
  • Red or swollen gums

Treatment:

Give the individual fruit juice or sweets or high sugar food or sugar if they have low blood sugar. Give them insulin if they have high blood sugar levels. Seek medical assistance and call 999.


Hypoglycaemia

An exam question may refer to Hypoglycaemia, this means having low blood glucose/sugar levels that fall below 4 mmol/L (72mg/dL).

Symptoms are the same as diabetes:

  • Sweating
  • Fatigue or weakness with headaches
  • Feeling dizzy or nausea or sickness
  • Pale complexion
  • Feeling hungry
  • A higher heart rate than usual
  • Blurred vision
  • Confusion
  • Shaking or convulsions
  • Loss of consciousness or fainting

Treatments are also similar:

  • Eating or drinking glucose tablets, sweets, sugary drinks, fruit juice, glucose gel etc.
  • A blood test should be taken (after 15-20 minutes to check whether blood glucose levels have recovered).
  • Call an ambulance or call 999
  • If severe take glucogen (hormone)

Epilepsy

Symptoms include

Tingling or pins and needles and a sudden muscle stiffness. Spasms and twitching on one side of the body, shaking with eyes rolling or loss of control.

Loss of senses or change in senses. A blurred vision and a loss of consciousness or dizziness or disorientation.

The patient would show signs of confusion and not remembering what had happened, often being unable to communicate with slurred speech. They would be unaware of surroundings with blank staring or not responding; a vacant episode.

There are sudden intense emotions and they have a feeling events have happened before or déjà vu.

Often this is a reaction to light. With headaches and sleepiness.

  • Lip smacking
  • Foaming at mouth or dribbling
  • Rubbing hands
  • Fiddling with objects or fidgeting
  • loss of bladder or bowel control

Treatment

  • Call emergency services
  • Emergency care plan
  • Stay with them
  • Give appropriate medication
  • Keep them warm
  • Support the head or cushion their head
  • Reassure them or calm them down
  • Allow the fit to happen
  • When fit is over put in recovery position

Let them fit and put them in recovery position after fit.