Asepsis & Infection Control Flashcards
Freedom from disease causing microorganisms
Asepsis
Technique used to decrease the possibility of transferring microorganisms from one place to another
Aseptic technique
Type of asepsis: clean technique
Medical asepsis
Type of asepsis: includes all practices intended to confine a specific microorganism to a specific area, limiting the number, growth, and transmission of microorganisms
Medical asepsis
Type of asepsis: sterile technique
Surgical asepsis
Type of asepsis: refers to practices that keep an area or object free of all organisms, includes practices that destroy all microorganisms including spores
Surgical asepsis
Technique that destroys or kills most microorganisms, except bacterial spores
Disinfection
Microscopic dormant structure formed by some pathogens that are very hardy and often survive common cleaning technique
Spores
Invasion of body tissue by microorganisms and their growth there
Infection
Infection wherein microorganisms produce no clinical evidence of disease
Asymptomatic or subclinical infection
Detectable alteration in normal tissue function
Disease
Ability of a microorganism to cause disease
Pathogenicity
Severity of a condition caused by a pathogen
Virulence
Type of disease wherein the infectious agent can be transmitted to an individual by direct or indirect contact, or as airborne infection
Communicable disease
Microorganism that causes disease
Pathogen
Microorganism that can cause a disease even in a healthy host
True pathogens
Microorganism that can cause infection in people who are immunocompromised
Opportunistic pathogens
State of infection, organ injury, or damage in response to infection
Sepsis
Type of infection that are associated with the delivery of health care services in a health care facility
Nosocomial infection
Number of days between when you’re infected and when you might see symptoms
Incubation period
Microorganisms that cause nosocomial infections that originate from the clients themselves
Endogenous
Microorganisms that are from the hospital environment and hospital personnel
Exogenous
Infection that is a direct result of diagnostic or therapeutic procedure
Iatrogenic infection
Infection that is confined to a specific part of the body
Local infection
Infection that involves different body systems
Systemic infection
Sudden onset infection
Acute infection
Slow onset or slow progression infection
Chronic infection
Chain of infection: microorganism producing an infectious process
Etiologic agent
Chain of infection: source of microorganism e.g. food, water, feces, plants, animals, environment
Reservoir
Person or animal reservoir of a specific infectious agent that usually does not manifest any clinical signs of disease
Carrier
Chain of infection: female anopheles mosquito reservoir carries malaria parasite but is unaffected by it
Reservoir
To break the chain from the _____, kill the pathogen e.g. through disinfection, early detection
Reservoir
Chain of infection: route where the microorganism leaves the reservoir
Portal of exit
What tract serves as the portal of exit for sneezing?
Respiratory tract
What tract serves as the portal of exit for coughing?
Respiratory tract