Inflammatory Process and Electrolyte Balance

Inflammation and Electrolyte Balance:
Delving Deeper into Inflammation
Inflammation
Inflammation is commonly known as a negative health condition because of the various physical observations that non-medically inclined people see. However, without the process of inflammation, the process of healing would not begin. Inflammation is defined as the "body`s immediate reaction to tissue injury or damage" (Nair and Peat, 2009). This injury may be caused by: 1) infections brought about by viruses, bacteria, fungi and other parasites; 2) physical and chemical reactions of the body to various environmental agents; 3) trauma; 4) genetic problems; 5) and other immune responses (Nair and Peat, 2009; McCane et. al., 2010). In the process of inflammation, the white blood cells or the leukocytes travel to the damaged tissue to begin repair. The process in which the tissue starts repairing its damaged parts is commonly known as wound healing.
Wound healing is a complex process which is composed of at least three phases. The first phase is the inflammatory phase wherein the tissue begins to achieve homeostasis once again. In this phase, the blood vessels constrict—a process known as vasoconstriction— to increase blood pressure then the thrombocytes, or platelets, begin to aggregate. After that inflammation begins wherein the blood vessels dilate—medically termed as vasodilation— to decrease the blood pressure which causes the swelling or oedema of the damaged tissue, the redness of the area, increased heat and stimulation of nerve endings surrounding the tissue which in turn brings the sensation of pain and this allows the leukocytes to commence phagocytosis in case infectious bacteria and other foreign bodies have invaded the tissue or if there are no infectious bodies that entered the tissue then macrophages, a type of leukocyte, would engulf the remains of the ruptured cells caused by the damage. Then, the aggregated thrombocytes start to clot. The second phase is known as the proliferative phase wherein first granulation happens. Here the fibroblasts start to produce a layer of collagen which fills in the damaged part of the tissue and produces new sets of capillaries. Then the wound enters the contraction process in which the edges of the wound would be decreasing in size to reduce the probability of increasing the damage. After that, epithelial tissue starts to cover the area to avoid further invasion. Finally, the wound enters the third phase called the remodeling phase which includes the formation of new collagen to enhance the tensile strength of the wound. In this phase, the formation of the rough scab is seen. (Fishman, 2010; Nair and Peat, 2009; McCane et. al., 2010).
The inflammatory response of the body may be seen as a negative health condition of the public due to its four main signs or symptoms. These symptoms are brought about by the different positive processes that occur within the body and emit negat...