Professional Documents
Culture Documents
OSCE
OSCE
DEPARTMENT OF NURSING
3RD COHORT
BY
GROUP 4
MAY, 2023.
GROUP MEMBERS
Definition Of unconsciousness
Unconsciousness refers to a state of being where a person is not awake or aware of their
surroundings. It can be caused by various factors such as trauma, illness, or anesthesia. When
someone is unconscious, they are not responsive to stimuli and are unable to consciously
perceive or interact with the world.
Unconsciousness is a physiological state in which the patient is not responsive to sensory stimuli
and lacks awareness of self and the environment.
Causes of Unconsciousness
Unconsciousness can result from the various underlying reasons
1. Shock
2. Asphyxia
3. Poisoning
4. Cerebro-Vascular Accident or Stroke
5. Haemorrhage
6. Low blood sugar
7. Traumatic brain injury
8. Ischemic stroke
7. Intracerebral hemorrhage
8. Subarachnoid hemorrhage
Stages of unconsciousness
• a confusional state
• a vegetative state
• a coma
People in vegetative states and comas are fully unconscious. People in minimally conscious
states may have some level of consciousness that comes and goes.
People usually enter into vegetative states and comas due to an illness or injury to the brain.
People may enter minimally conscious states by fainting or blacking out, and this is usually more
temporary.
When a person is unconscious, there are several changes that can occur in the pupils and motor
responses. These changes are as follows:
* Pupillary response: The pupils may become fixed and dilated, which means that they do not
respond to light. This is known as a "fixed and dilated" pupil response.
* Motor response: The muscles may become flaccid, meaning that they are unable to contract.
This can result in a loss of muscle tone and increased flexibility.
* Reflexes: The reflexes may become diminished or absent, which means that they do not
respond to external stimuli.
In summary, a patient can go through different levels and stages of both consciousness and
unconsciousness. It is therefore the nurses duty to cater for their needs throughout these stages
with help from the GCS scoring system and care for them till full health.
REFERENCE
6. Wijdicks EF, Bamlet WR, Maramattom BV, Manno EM, McClelland RL. Validation of a
new coma scale: The FOUR score. Ann Neurol. 2005 Oct;58(4):585-93. [PubMed]