microbiology unit 2 terms

Etiology

the study of the cause of disease

Infection

the growth of microorganisms in the body

Microbial antagonism (aka competitive exclusion)

growth of some microbes prevents the growth of other microbes

pathogens

a disease-causing organism

pathogenesis

the manner in which disease develops

Infectious disease

a disease in which pathogens invade a suseptible host and carry out at least part of their life cycle in the host

symptoms

a change in body function that is felt by a patient as a result of a disease

communicable disease

any disease that can be spread from one host to another

contagious disease

a disease that is easily spread from one person to another

noncommunicable disease

a disease that is not transmitted from one person to another

Incidence

the fraction of the population that contracts a disease during a particular period of time

prevalence

the fraction of a population having a specific disease at a given time

sporadic disease

a disease that occurs occasionally in a population

endemic disease

a disease that is constantly present in a certain population

epidemic disease

a disease acquired by many hosts in a given area in a short time

pandemic disease

an epidemic that occurs worldwide

infection fatality ration

calculated by dividing the number of deaths attributed to a disease by the total number of infected individuals

case fatality ration

the proportion of individuals diagnosed with a disease who die from that disease within a certain period of time

local infection

an infection in which pathogens are limited to a small area of the body

incubation period

the time interval between the actual infection and first appearance of any signs or symptoms of disease

prodromal period

the time following the the incubation period when the first syptomes of illness appear

period of illness

disease is most severe; has characteristic signs and syptomes

period of decline

signs and symptoms of the disease subside

period of convalescence

the recovery period, when the body returns to its pre-disease state

reservoirs of infection

continual source of infection

fomite

a nonliving object that can spread infection

healthcare-associated infectious/nosocomial infections

an infection that develops during a stay at a health care facility and was not present at the time the patient was admitted

epidemiology

the science that studies when and where diseases occur and how they are transmitted

portals of entry

the avenue by which a pathogen gains access to the body

adherence

attachment of a microbe or phagocyte to another’s plasma membrane or other surface

siderophores

bacterial iron-binding protiens

toxin

any poisonous substance produced by a microorganism

hemolysins

an enzyme that lyses red blood cells

portals of exit

the route by which a pathogen leaves the body

signs

a change due to a disease that a person can observe and measure

syndrome

a specific group of signs or syptoms that accompany a disease