Essay 3 (Bio201 Lesn 6 Essay 3 N) Rio

Complete and submit Essay 3 (BIO201 LESN 6 Essay 3 N) The Skeletal System, as instructed below:

1. Jason is a 14-year-old who recently had his nose pierced. He tells his mother that the area is very tender and warm to the touch. The area is also red. The mother calls the pediatrician's office and the nurse recommends that the mother bring Jason in for evaluation. The nurse explains to the mother that a local infection can spread and cause serious harm. Where do you think the infection could spread and why?


Jason is at risk for serious infection. Depending on where his current infection is (perichondreum versus cartilage), he is at risk for the infection spreading and the tissue becoming necrotic. For example, if the infection is localized in the cartilage, Jason and his mother may have a difficult time treating it. The reason for this is that unlike earlobes and other popular piercing sites, cartilage is avascular and thus does not have a rich supply of blood to deliver oral antibiotics.

From here, the cartilage has the potential to start dying, which can result in the removal of cartilage. Even more dangerously, the surrounding perichondreum may become infected. Due to the nature of a nasal piercing going completely through the nose to the nasal mucosa, it’s only a short jump at that point to the mucosa covering the nasal septum or the sinuses that drain into the nostrils. As the infections travel up the course of the sinuses and perichondreum linings, it has the potential to reach the cranial cavity and the brain.

This information is particularly well timed, as over the weekend it seemed like a good idea for me to re-pierce my nose. Although it was original done at a reputable piercer, it had long since closed due mainly to my husband’s objections about its existence. But, perhaps rather unwisely, I determined it was something I was capable of completing on my own. I initially pushed an earring through, then took a “sterilized” brooch and...