Breaking the Chain of Transmission Flashcards
Why do we encourage microbial growth in a laboratory?
to identify the pathogen and test antimicrobial agents
What is the medium in which we grow bacteria?
agar
What is the purpose of sterilization?
inhibit the growth of microbes in vitro
What is the thermal death point?
lowest temperature needed to kill all the organisms
What is the thermal death time?
length of time needed to sterilize at a specific temperature?
What are the physical methods of sterilization?
heat (moist and dry) and ethylene oxide autoclave
What type of microbe cannot be killed in an autoclave?
prions
What microbes does disinfection kill?
most of them - except spores
What do you call solutions to disinfect skin?
antiseptics
What is the reduction of microbes to a safe level??
sanitization
What are the suffixes that refer to killing?
-cide / -cidal
What are the 5 factors which affect disinfection?
time, temperature, concentration, presence of proteins, microbe (type, number, presence)
How do we disinfect liquids?
pasteurization (milk and cider) and boiling
What type of alcohol is in hand sanitizers?
isopropranol
How does alcohol disinfect?
denatures protein
What is the clinical name for bleach?
hypochlorite
What is bleach for?
surface water purification, labs, swimming pools, etc
How do iodophors (iodine) disinfect?
goes thru cell wall of microbes and diripts protein and nucleic acid; blocks viral attachments
What are iodophors primarily used for?
antiseptic on skin or tissue prior to surgery
Which disinfectant is used for preservative uses?
formaldehyde
What disinfectant has surfactant and detergent properties?
quaternary ammonium
How does quaternary ammonium disinfect?
their positively charged molecules reacts with the negatively charged cell wall
Which disinfectant is non-corrosive to metal?
quaternary ammonium
Which disinfectant is used on medical equipment that cannot be heat sterilized?
glutaraldehyde
What are phenolics used for?
hospital and home environments cleaning supplies (and mouthwash)
How do phenolics disinfect?
disrupts the cell wall of microbes causing lysis
What is hydrogen peroxide used for?
it is a mild antiseptic for minor cuts, burns, mouth irritations
What are the three methods of disinfection and sterilizations?
physical agents (heat and radiation); chemical agents (gases and liquids); and mechanical removal (filtration)
What are hospital acquired infections?
infection originating in a patient while in a hospital; it is new and unrelated to the patient’s primary condition
What are the three major factors that combine to cause HAIs?
increased # of drug resistant pathogens. failure of healthcare personnel to follow infection control guidelines, increased # of immunocompromised patients
What are bacteria that are resistant to a NUMBER of different antibiotics?
multiple resistant organism (superbug!)
What are the two risk factors for getting MROs?
frequent use of antibiotics and recent hospitalizations
How do we eliminate the chain of transmission?
environmental cleaning/disinfection
