Untitled Flashcards Set
Need to have knowledge of epidemiology
clinical medicine
pathology
biostatistics (the application of statistical methods to data relating to human biology, health, and medicine)
social science (the study of human behavior and society)
An epidemic is a disease outbreak that is rapidly spreading in a limited region. A pandemic is an epidemic that is actively spreading to multiple regions across the globe.
patient zero is the first documented patient in a disease epidemic within a population
An understanding of social science is helpful to an epidemiologist as it provides insights into human behavior, societal structures, and cultural factors, which are crucial in studying and controlling the spread of diseases.
Infection: results when a disease causing organism invades and begins growing within another organism
Disease: the growth of a pathogen impairing bodily functions.
Pathogen: Organisms that are infectious and cause disease
Parasites: Living, multicellular, eukaryotic (with nucleus)worms. Both microscopic and macroscopic varieties exist.
Parasites Infection: through consumption of contaminated foods or water or by being bit by an infected insect. Parasites deprive the host of essential nutrients found in food and can cause tissue and organ damage.
Parasites Diagnosis: Microscopic examination of fecal material or blood to look for the presence of the worms.
Parasites Treatment: Deworming medications.
Parasites Prevention: Avoid contaminated food, water, fecal matter and insect bites
Protist/Protozoa: Living, microscopic, single-celled, eukaryotic(has a nucleus), animal-like organisms.
Protist/Protozoa How they infect: ingestion of food or water that has been contaminated with feces. Infect the digestive tract, blood, or organs of the body depriving a host of nutrients found in food. Can cause tissue and organ damage.
Protist/Protozoa Diagnosis: Microscopic examination of fecal material to look for the presence of the protists.
Protist/Protozoa Treatment: Antiprotozoal medication (metronidazole, tinidazole and nifuratel)
Protist/Protozoa Prevention: Maintenance of sanitary conditions and proper personal hygiene.
Fungi: Living, multicellular, eukaryotic organisms. Include yeasts, mildews, molds, and mushrooms. Both microscopic and macroscopic varieties exist.
Fungi How they infect: spores of the fungi, the reproductive cells, are inhaled or land on a host. Infection can result in tissue damage.
Fungi Diagnosis: Microscopic examination of tissue taken from the infected area, or blood taken from the host, to look for the presence of the fungi.
Fungi Treatment: Antifungals (Terbinafine, itraconazole, fluconazole,)
Fungi Prevention: Avoiding contact with an infected host.
Bacteria: Living, microscopic, unicellular, prokaryotic (no nucleus )organisms.
Bacteria How they infect: Through an orifice (nose, eyes, mouth), a wound, by ingesting contaminated food or water, inhalation, sexual contact or an imbalance in our normal flora(gut bacteria). Bacteria can invade cells, cause tissue damage, and produce harmful toxins.
Bacteria Diagnosis: Through a bacteria culture using n a sample of blood, stool, urine, skin, mucus or spinal fluid.
Bacteria Treatment: Antibiotics
Bacteria Prevention: Vaccines, maintenance of sanitary conditions, and proper personal hygiene.
Virus: Non-living microscopic agents made up of an outer protein shell, called a capsid, and either DNA or RNA
Virus How they infect: Through touch, saliva, blood, or sexual contact. Viruses cannot replicate on their own. To reproduce, they infect cells and take over the host cells’ protein synthesis processes. A side effect is that host cells and tissues are destroyed.
Virus Diagnosis: Antigen test and PCR test
Virus Prevention: Vaccines and proper personal hygiene.
Prions:Non-living, submicroscopic, proteins.
Prions How they infect: consumption of meat tainted with prions or by receiving corneas or organs from infected individuals. These infectious proteins cause normal proteins in the brain to fold abnormally.
Prions Diagnosis: MRI, cerebrospinal fluid analysis, electroencephalogram (EEG) which analyzes brain waves, and blood tests.
Prions Prevention: Properly cleaning and sterilizing medical equipment. Avoid contaminated beef