Communicable Disease PLM

Communicable Diseases

Illnesses caused by infectious agents that can be transmitted from one person to another.

Multicausation

A concept that describes disease etiology as a result of interaction among host, infectious agent, and environment.

Chain of Transmission

The series of links that describes how an infectious agent passes from a reservoir to a host.

Incubation Period

The time from invasion by an infectious agent to the appearance of symptoms.

Epidemic

An unexpected increase in the number of cases of a disease in a particular geographic area over a specified period.

Primary Prevention

Actions taken to prevent the transmission of infectious agents before the onset of disease.

Vaccination

The administration of a vaccine to confer active immunity against an infectious disease.

Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS)

A national system for monitoring the safety of vaccines in the United States.

Herd Immunity

The resistance to the spread of an infectious disease within a population when a sufficiently high proportion is immune.

Portal of Exit

The path by which an infectious agent leaves its host.

Vector-Borne Infections

Diseases transmitted by vectors, such as mosquitoes or ticks, that carry pathogens.

Public Health Control

Strategies and actions taken to manage and control the incidence and spread of infectious diseases.

Antimicrobial Resistance

The ability of microorganisms to withstand the effects of medications that once killed them or inhibited their growth.

Quarantine

Isolation of individuals who may have been exposed to an infectious disease to prevent its spread.

Carriers

Individuals who carry and can transmit an infectious agent but do not have symptoms of the disease.

Cold Chain

A system that ensures vaccines are stored and transported at the correct temperature to maintain potency.