Passaic County Community College
Science Department
BS-205, Physiology of Disease
Master Course Syllabus 2010-2011
I. Course Code #
BS-205
II. Course Title
Physiology of Disease
III. Prerequisite
BS-104
IV. Number of Credits 3 credits lecture
V. Instructor Information
Course Coordinator:
Prof. Anne LaGrange Loving
aloving@pccc.edu
VI. Catalog Description
Introduces the study of disease pathology. Includes description, etiology, signs and symptoms, diagnostic
procedures, current medical treatment including pharmacology, progress and prevention of diseases of the
major body systems, with emphasis on basic concepts and the terminology of pathology.
3 hours lecture
Prerequisite: BS 104
VII. Course Objectives
At the end of BS-205 the students will be able to:
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explain essential terms that apply to pathophysiology.
explain various aspects of cancer, including treatments and prevention.
explain the symptoms, diagnostic tests, and pharmacological treatments for the primary pathophysiological
conditions of the body.
*analyze a problem and draw conclusions from data and evidence by applying the scientific method.
* demonstrate understanding of basic terminology, major concepts and fundamental theories in science.
* apply scientific theories and principles to the solving of current issues and problems.
* NOTE: these are Science General Education Goals specifically applied to this course.
The objective of this course is to introduce the student to the study of pathophysiology. This course will expand on the
foundations of normal physiology that were introduced in BS-103 and BS-104, Anatomy & Physiology I & II. The
purpose of this course is to give an overview of the prevalent clinical conditions that affect the major organs systems of
the body along with the current treatment regimens being followed to deal with conditions. Pharmacological aspects of
disease intervention will also be introduced.
VIII. Tentative Course Outline
Week
Lecture Topic/s
Chapter
Textbook
2
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
Introduction to Cellular Injury
Inflammation and Healing
Review of Normal and Abnormal
Immunity
Neoplastic Disorders
Cardiovascular
Exam #1 tentatively scheduled
Respiratory
Digestive
Urinary
Neurological
Exam #2 tentatively scheduled
Endocrine
Musculoskeletal
Skin
Pregnancy Complications
Exam #3
Comprehensive Final Examination
1
2
3
Pages
2-17
18-43
44-75
5
18
104-127
302-361
19
20
21
22
362-421
422-491
492-521
522-569
25
26
27
9
612-643
644-669
670-689
188-199
IX. Required Texts and Materials
Pathophysiology for the Health Professions, 3rd Edition, by Barbara E. Gould. Saunders Elsevier Company,
2006
X. Methods of Evaluation
NOTE: this course is also offered online. The same material is covered in the online section as in the “live”
sections of this course. However, there are some differences in how students are evaluated.
a) Summary
Exams (3 exams at 20% each)
Case Study
Final Exam
60%
15%
25%
Grade Scale
A=93-100%
A-=90-92%
B+=88-89%
B=83-87%
B-=80-82%
C+=78-79%
C=70-77%
D=60-69%
F=<60%
b) Exams
The three exams will cover the material indicated in the Course Outline and in the lectures. All three
of these exams count; that is, none of these grades will be dropped. They will be worth 20% each, for
a total of 60% of the overall course grade. Each will be announced one week in advance, and the
format and material to be included will be clearly explained. They will include a variety of questions,
including multiple-choice, mini case studies, and some writing. There will be no make-up exams.
c) Case Study
3
Each student will have to write one complete Case Study. The topic (disease) will have to be approved
by me. Topics will be due to me in writing the second class meeting. Go online, read your
textbook, and use any other sources you wish to find a disease that you find interesting (perhaps a
condition that you, a friend, or a family member has experienced). There is no point in choosing a
topic that is of no interest to you. The Internet should be your primary source of information.
Case Studies will involve details about the disease, as well as creative writing. Your writing will count –
papers that are written in very poor English will not be graded. If you are unsure of your writing, find
a trusted friend or family member who can help you. However, make sure the paper is written in
your own words – I will easily be able to see if you have plagiarized someone else’s words from
a textbook or from the Internet. A paper that includes plagiarized work will be graded as a
ZERO, and this may result in dismissal from the course.
When you write a Case Study, you should initially gather information about the disease, including
symptoms, pertinent diagnostic tests and laboratory and physical findings, treatments, and prognoses.
Acquire this information from the Internet, as well as textbooks and any other pertinent literature.
After you have your facts in front of you, then you will “create” an imaginary patient. You get to
decide the patient’s profile; however it must correspond with the disease you have chosen. For
example, if you are going to write a paper on osteoporosis, you would not have the patient be a oneyear-old child.
The format of the Case Study will be as follows:
Background
In this section, you introduce the patient and describe his or her symptoms and the course of
the illness. For example, you might begin as follows: “Mary B., a 41-year-old Caucasian female,
came to the clinic complaining of recurrent episodes of diarrhea, abdominal pain, and nausea that had persisted
for 2 weeks. She is a school teacher, but during a vacation one month prior she traveled to Montevideo,
Uruguay.” You would go on to add any other information that might pertain to the disease,
such as: does she own a pet? is she married? does she have small children? does she live in the city? does she
have any other diseases? etc. Make sure that you include information that pertains to the disease.
If the patient’s profession puts him at risk for your disease, be sure to include that. You can
also add information or symptoms that do not necessarily relate to the disease; for example
you might add that Mary B. suffers from alopecia, even if this ultimately has nothing to do
with the case at hand.
Physical Findings
In this section, include the patient’s weight, blood pressure, temperature, pulse rate, chest
sounds, abdominal sounds, or whatever seems to apply to the disease you have chosen. In this section
you will also include any tests that were ordered, such as an EKG or blood work, and what the
results were. You will have this information available from your research of the disease – for
example, if the disease you have selected is characterized by obesity, make sure that your
patient is overweight. If anemia is a symptom, make sure the laboratory results for the
hemoglobin and hematocrit are appropriate.
Diagnosis and Discussion
In this section, explain how the diagnosis was determined – from laboratory findings,
symptoms, patient history, and other parameters. Give a brief summary of the disease, now
that it has been named. For example, if your “patient” has rheumatoid arthritis, include a oneparagraph description of this disease, the prevalence in the United States, etc.
Treatment
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In this section, explain the course of treatment. Make sure you select appropriate drugs,
exercises, surgery, or whatever fits for your disease. For example: The patient was put on a course
of XXXX drug for 30 days, and was instructed to alter his diet to include XXXXX.
Outcome
In this final section, describe what happened to your patient. Perhaps you will decide to have
your patient die. Maybe your patient has a chronic condition, and you summarize how he or
she is doing, and that continued supervision will be necessary. Perhaps it appropriate to
include that you have referred the patient and his family to a support group. Maybe the
patient is completely cured, but then gets hit by a bus on the way home from the hospital.
This is all up to you.
References
References will be listed at the end of the paper. The References page does not count toward
the 5-8 pages. The paper must include at least five electronic references. Please note that if
you provide only five references, this will be considered “fair” in terms of the grading rubric.
Each listed reference should include the exact web address, the date it was posted, the date
you accessed it, and as many other details as possible. The site must be available, as I will be
spot-checking these references. The following example shows how a web reference should be
listed:
Washington State Department of Ecology (1998). Chemical testing methods for designating dangerous
waste (Publication No. 97-407). Retrieved September 23, 2007, from
http://www.ect.wa.gov/biblio/9740-7.html.
Presentation
The Case Study should be typed. If you do not own a computer, you can use one of the many
that are available for students in the library and in Hamilton Hall. The paper should be typed
in double-space, which makes it easier for me to read and to insert any comments. I cannot
give you an exact length, but it should be in the range of 5-8 pages. Length is not as critical as
quality; papers that are very long may not even be read. In other words, if you submit at 20page document, I might just grade it as a ZERO. The criteria I will use to grade your paper
include: accuracy, thoroughness, and creativity. Yes, I will be including creativity as part of
your grade – that is, did you make the “story” interesting, as well as accurate? Make sure you
include all the sections that are defined, above. It will be worth 15% of your overall course
grade.
Grading for the Case Study Paper
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This paper will be worth 15% of the grade for this course. The grade for the paper will be based on the following
rubric:
Unacceptable
Background of the
patient
Poor
Fair
Good
Above
Average
Excellent
(0)
(2)
(5)
(7)
(10)
(13)
(0)
(2)
(5)
(7)
(10)
(13)
(0)
(2)
(5)
(7)
(10)
(13)
(0)
(2)
(5)
(7)
(10)
(13)
(0)
(2)
(5)
(7)
(10)
(13)
(0)
(2)
(4)
(6)
(9)
(12)
(0)
(2)
(5)
(7)
(10)
(13)
(0)
(2)
(4)
Physical Findings
Diagnosis and
Discussion
Treatment
Outcome
Creativity
References
Presentation – overall
appearance of the
paper
(6)
(8)
(10)
Maximum possible grade = 100%
The Case Study will be due in the 10th week of class. You will have put a tremendous amount of work into your
papers; I, therefore, need plenty of time to read them and grade them. No papers will be accepted late, for any
reason whatsoever. Therefore, I suggest that you plan to submit your paper early, in order to avoid complications of
last-minute “disasters” such as problems with a printer or a dog eating your Case Study. I will not give extra credit for
papers that are submitted ahead of time, but the benefit to your peace of mind may be immeasurable!
d) Final Examination
The final examination will be comprehensive, covering all of the course material from the semester.
This will be worth 25% of your overall course grade. It will be given during the last scheduled class
meeting. Please do not make any travel plans that will prevent you from being present for the
final examination.
e) Attendance and Punctuality
Students are expected to attend all lectures. Simply copying the lecture notes from a classmate, or
reading the textbook will not suffice. My exams are heavily based on in-class lectures, discussion, and
current news stories that apply to the course material. I will not reduce your grade if you miss class,
but your potential for success in the class will be compromised.
Regarding punctuality, I place a high priority on starting class promptly. I find it distracting and
annoying when people wander in late, shuffling books and coats. Please figure out your commute,
your parking situation, and other variables, and get to class on time. I will really appreciate this.
f) Cheating
Cheating will absolutely not be tolerated in this class. Every student will have to sign a disclaimer on
each exam, indicating that s/he has not cheated during the exam. Plagiarism, likewise, will not be
allowed in the Case Study. You must use your own words when you write the Case Study. Any
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student who is caught cheating or plagiarizing will get a ZERO on that assignment or exam, and may
be dismissed from the course.
XI. Portal
Assignments, outlines, the course syllabus, and other information for this course are posted on the portal. The
information is accessed by following these simple directions:
1. go to the PCCC homepage: http://www.pccc.edu
2. click on “my PCCC account” at the bottom of the page
3. click on “log in”
4. enter your log-in ID and your password, and click “login”
5. enter the correct semester under “term”, for example “09/FA” is the Fall 2009 semester
6. click on the course name and section number
7. click on “shared files”
8. click on whatever file you need
XII. Disabilities
If you have a disability and believe you need accommodations during this course, please contact the Special
Needs Counselor in the Center for Student Success. If you require testing accommodations, I must be notified
by official channels in writing in advance of the test.
XIII. Cellular Telephones
Please turn your cell phone off before you come to class. Even “vibrating” phones are extraordinarily
distracting, especially when followed by a hurried exit from the class by someone who “has to” take an “urgent
call.” I don’t even bring my phone with me. There will be a break in the middle of our 2½-hour lecture,
during which time you can check your messages. Thank you for respecting this.
XIV. Children
Children will not be permitted to come to class or laboratory sessions. Material discussed during lecture may
be inappropriate for children, children may cause a distraction during an exam, and laboratories are completely
unsafe for children.
Rev. 1-2009, A.L.L.