LA

Disease Flashcards

Nonsocomial Disease

  • Diseases acquired in a hospital setting.
  • Examples: UTI, Infections

Zoonotic Disease

  • Diseases transmitted from animals to humans.
  • Examples: Rabies, Salmonella, COVID, Lyme Disease
  • Preventative measures: Wash hands, vaccinate pets, cook meat properly.

Five Periods of Disease

  • Incubation
  • Prodromal
  • Illness
  • Decline
  • Convalescence

Portals of Entry

  • Anatomic sites through which pathogens can pass into host tissue.
  • Examples: Skin, mucous membranes, wounds, bites

Adhesion

  • A phase of the portal of entry where pathogens attach to host tissues.
  • Involves proteins, carbohydrates, or ligands on the pathogen's surface.
  • Biofilms act as an adhesion factor.

Systemic Infection

  • An infection found throughout the body.

Primary Infection

  • The first time the body is infected by a specific pathogen (bacteria, virus, fungus).
  • Initiates the illness and the immune response.

Exotoxins

  • Biologically active products secreted by pathogens, mostly Gram-positive bacteria.
  • Secreted as part of their growth and metabolism.
  • Significance: Some of the most lethal chemicals known.
  • Poisons released by some bacteria that can damage tissues or cause symptoms in diseases.
  • A major reason why some bacterial infections make you very sick.
  • They are PROTEINS.

Endotoxins

  • Part of the bacterial cell and not a metabolic product.
  • Located in the outer portion of the cell wall of Gram-negative bacteria.
  • These bacteria have an outer membrane surrounding the peptidoglycan layer of the cell wall.
  • They are LIPIDS.
  • When released, they can cause fever, inflammation, or even shock.

Helminths

  • Parasitic worms.
  • Their waste products can contribute to disease.
  • Examples: Pinworms, Tapeworms, Roundworms, blood flukes

Vectors

  • Mechanical or biological carriers of disease from one host to another.
  • Mechanical vectors: involve an animal not infected itself.
  • Biological vectors: Transmit pathogen while being infected itself.

Emerging Disease

  • An infectious disease either new to the human population or showing an increase in prevalence in the previous 20 years.

Reemerging Disease

  • A disease that is increasing in frequency after a period of decline.
  • Examples: TB, Malaria, Pneumonia

WHO: World Health Organization

  • Monitors and reports on infectious diseases.
  • Develops and implements strategies for control and prevention.
  • Develops public health campaigns.

CDC: Center for Disease Control

  • Can implement quarantine.
  • Protects public health to prevent/control diseases.

Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAIs)

  • Patients must have been admitted to the healthcare facility for a reason other than the infection for the infection to be classified as HAI.
  • Also called a nosocomial infection.

Quarantining

  • Isolating a patient to prevent spreading disease.
  • Protects vulnerable populations, reduces outbreaks, and gives healthcare systems time to respond.

Droplet Transmission

  • Occurs when an individual coughs or sneezes.
  • Small droplets of mucus are ejected, which can transmit a pathogen to a new host if it is one meter away or less; Over that is airborne.

Direct Transmission

  • Involves physical contact like touching, kissing, sex, or droplet spray.
  • Can be vertical (mom to baby during breastfeeding) or horizontal (skin-to-skin with the mucous membrane).

Indirect Transmission

  • Involves inanimate objects (Fomites) that have been contaminated with pathogens from an infected individual.
  • Could be Airborne/Droplet

Joseph Lister

  • A British surgeon who introduced antiseptic techniques in surgery, helping to reduce infection.
  • He was a proponent of handwashing.

Florence Nightingale

  • A British nurse who helped improve hospital sanitation and is known as the founder of modern nursing.
  • Kept meticulous records.

Etiology

  • It is the study of the cause of a disease.
  • It helps doctors diagnose accurately, choose the right treatment, and helps prevent the disease from spreading or coming back.