How Does Shock affect the Body?

Circulatory shock or using its allowable name physiological shock is when the blood flow in your body is dramatically reduced. This type of shock happens when your body is physically reacting to a situation your body is being faced to deal with, which is separate to the coarse type of shock when your mind is reacting to a situation for example being a victim of an aggressive crime.

Physiological shock can be caused by severe bleeding, a blood clot in the heart or lungs, spinal injury, severe vomiting and diarrhoea or poisoning. Physiological shock is split into separate types depending on the cause.

Shock

For example, if your heart has been severely damaged by a major heart charge or similar reason, it is no longer able to pump the blood colse to the body properly and therefore your blood flow has reduced quite dramatically. This type of physiological shock is called cardiogenic shock. It can be treated by using drugs to make the heart beat stronger, whilst the heart is recovering. This is what we see on the hospital Tv programmes when someone suffers a heart charge and then goes into shock after as the heart is not working properly and the person's blood pressure has dramatically reduced.

How Does Shock affect the Body?

You can also suffer from "Septic Shock" which is when a bacterial infection causes the person's blood pressure to drop. Anyone who has been suffering from a severe illness, sickness and diarrhoea caused by a bacterial infection could suffer septic shock. The bacterial infection could come from a estimate of sources such as untreated and dirty wounds, or from contaminated food and/or internal intake. When bacterial infections are treated with antibiotics the bacteria releases heavy amounts of toxins which are then killed off. These toxins can enter the body and the blood stream which can make the shock worse and must be dealt with by the accurate administering and monitoring of drugs.

Another form of shock which can cause this physiological or circulatory shock is anaphylactic shock. You may have heard of anaphylactic shock which is a body's severe allergic reaction to something such as a bee sting, wasp sting, food allergy such as nuts, shellfish or eggs and can also contain the allergic reaction to some medicines such an penicillin. Due to this reaction, the blood flow colse to the body is not being circulated properly. This type of shock can be hazardous as it can work on the person's breathing too as well as swelling to the mouth, throat, lips and tongue. Anyone who is aware of suffering from this type of shock should carry on them an EpiPen which should be self administered immediately whilst you are waiting for curative help.

If you are in any doubt, you should always seek curative assistance. However, knowing basic first aid skills could be of great aid in the meantime.

How Does Shock affect the Body?

Shockshock pump