Antibiotics Flashcards
Definition of infection?
Infection means the entry of a microorganism into the body, where it multiplies & causes disease
What are the 2 prerequisites for infection?
1, The host must be susceptible
2. The organism must be pathogenic (disease causing)
Definition of Pathogenic bacteria
These are disease causing bacteria as opposed to commensals (e.g. flora in the gastro-intestinal tract) that do not cause disease, but instead serve a useful purpose in preventing overgrowth of pathogenic bacteria
Opportunistic infections?
Under certain circumstances like in immunodeficiency or when broad spectrum antibiotics are overused, normally non-pathogenic organisms cause disease & these infections are called opportunistic infections
Nosocomial infections?
Infections obtained in the hospital environment
Super infection?
Infection occurring after or on top of an earlier infection, especially following Rx with broad-spectrum antibiotics
Selective toxicity?
A compound must exhibit selective toxicity, i.e. interfere with the growth of the infectious agent while having little or no deleterious(causing harm or damage) effect on host cells
Resistance?
Resistance to an antibiotic has occurred when an organism is no longer affected by a drug that previously killed it
What are the causes of drug resistance?
- Unnecessary use of antibiotics
- Inappropriate choice of antibiotics
- Using lower than effective doses.
- Using inappropriately long dosing intervals.
- Inappropriate use of broad spectrum agents.
- Inappropriate use of antibiotic combinations.
- Using bacteriostatic agents in immunodeficiency states.
- Continuing an antibiotic in the presence of resistance.
Drug Sensitivity?
The organism is sensitive to the drug if it is killed by it, or if the organism’s growth is inhibited by it
Broad spectrum & narrow spectrum antibiotics?
- Broad spectrum antibiotics kill / inhibit the growth of bacteria belonging to two / more different groups
- Narrow spectrum antibiotics only kill / inhibit a single / limited group of bacteria
Bactericidal antibiotics?
Antibiotics that kill bacteria.
Bacteriostatic antibiotics?
- Antibiotics that INHIBIT (stop) the growth of the bacterium & allow the body’s defense mechanisms to destroy the organism
- Some bacteriostatic drugs are bactericidal in high doses
Structure of bacteria?
- Bacteria are unicellular, living organisms with a cell wall, cytoplasm & a nucleus containing one chromosome
- They function like independent living cells
Description according to oxygen needs?
AEROBIC and ANAEROBIC
- Aerobic
These bacteria rely on oxygen from the environment to live; therefore they need an oxygenated environment to survive. - Anaerobic
These bacteria produce their own oxygen from other chemical compounds; therefore they do not need an oxygenated environment to survive
Description according to Gram staining. Gram-Positive
- Take up the crystal violet stain used in the test, & then appear to be purple-coloured when seen through a microscope
- This is because the thick peptidoglycan layer in the bacterial cell wall retains the stain after it is washed away from the rest of the sample, in the decolorization stage of the test
Description according to Gram staining. Gram-Negative
Cannot retain the violet stain after the decolorization step
•Their peptidoglycan layer is much thinner & sandwiched between an inner cell membrane & a bacterial outer membrane, causing them to take up the counterstain (safranin or fuchsine) & appear red or pink
Cell wall inhibitors
Beta-lactam antibiotics:
- Penicillin’s
- Cephalosporins
- Carbapenems
- Monobactams
- Penicillin’s
- Narrow spectrum: Penicillin G; Penicillin V; Benzathine penicillin; Procaine penicillin
- Penicillinase resistant: Flucloxacillin, Cloxacillin
- Broad spectrum: Ampicillin; Amoxycillin; Amoxycillin/clavulanic acid combination
- Antipseudomonal penicillins: Piperacillin
Mechanism of action for Penicillin’s; Cephalosporins; Carbapenemes; Vancomycin ?
- Inhibit bacterial cell wall synthesis (then cell lysis occur)
- Bactericidal
Mechanism of action for Clavulanic acid?
Clavulanic acid acts as a beta-lactamase inhibitor (the enzyme that is formed by bacteria to inactivate the drug)