Microbiology and Respiratory Infections Flashcards

This set covers gastrointestinal and respiratory pathogens, transmission methods, diagnostic signs, and relevant vaccines based on medical microbiology lecture notes.

Minimum safe holding temperature

The lowest temperature ($60\,^{\circ}\text{C}$) at which cooked food should be held to remain safe.

ETEC treatment

Usually self-limiting, although anti-toxins could be used.

Reservoir

An organism that does not experience the pathogenic effects of the pathogen it carries.

Clostridium perfingens endospores

A characteristic of this bacterium is that it is capable of forming endospores.

EHEC

The group containing the most dangerous E. coli strains for causing gastrointestinal illness.

Shigellosis

A condition also known as bacillary dysentery.

Typhoid fever

A disease caused by the pathogens Salmonella paratyphi or S. typhi.

Stomach environment

Defined by being acidic.

Cholera control

Best managed by using good sanitation and hygiene practices to the greatest extent possible.

Salmonella typhimurium gastroenteritis

A disease often transmitted by undercooked, contaminated poultry.

Indirect infections

Occur when a host is infected by something carrying a pathogen that is not itself infected.

Breath test (Microbial detection)

A diagnostic tool used to detect the pathogen H. pylori.

Staphylococcus aureus gastrointestinal symptoms

Caused by the production of enterotoxins when the bacteria grow in food.

Heliobacter pylori

An unusual bacterium that survives in the acidic environment of the stomach and is associated with peptic ulcers and increased risk of stomach cancer.

Fecal-oral route

The most important mode of transmission for most waterborne infections.

Streptokinase

A protein responsible for dissolving blood clots.

Consolidations

Affected areas where the alveoli become fluid filled during pneumonia.

Varicella-zoster virus

A virus that becomes dormant in the dorsal ganglia after an initial infection.

Mucociliary escalator effect

A mechanism that removes pathogens from the respiratory tract, eliminates microbes from the lower respiratory tract, and inhibits pathogen attachment.

S. pyogenes

The microbe responsible for causing streptococcal pharyngitis, or strep throat.

Acute otitis media

The second leading cause of pediatrician visits by young children under age 5 years in the United States.

Spanish flu

A severe influenza pandemic caused by antigenic shift during the years 1918–1919.

Alveoli

The specific site within the respiratory tract where oxygen and carbon dioxide are exchanged.

Rubella transmission

Primarily spread through aerosols produced by infected individuals.

Koplik’s spots

An important clinical sign used to diagnose measles.

Palatine tonsils

Lymphoid tissue located within the oropharynx.

Rhinitis

An inflammation of the nasal passages.

Influenza vaccine composition

Designed to contain two influenza A strains and one to two influenza B strains based on dominant strains reviewed in February and September.

FluMist

A live attenuated flu vaccine.

Staphylococcus aureus carriage

Commonly carried in the nostrils of asymptomatic individuals despite being a potential pathogen.