Lecture 2 - Signs, symptoms and Monitoring of Infection Flashcards
What are bacterial infections caused by?
Bacteria
What are viral infections caused by?
Viruses
What are fungal infections caused by?
Fungus
What are antibacterial agents not effective against?
viral or fungal infections
What helps guide best treatment?
determining the most likely cause of the infection
What to consider for diagnosis?
actual or presumes
best guess of diagnosis
clinical judgement
cultures available
Source?
likely organism
bacterial, viral, fungal
Why do we need cultures?
To tailor therapy to suit the patient and the infection
Signs and symptoms of an infection?
redness/changes in skin colour
pain
heat
swelling
loss of function
Clinical assessment of a patient?
temperature
tachycardia
tachypnoea (breathing rate)
white cell count
hypotension
hyperglycaemia
swollen lymph nodes
What is a high/low temperature?
High = 38 degrees +
Low = 36 degrees or lower
Normal white cell count?
between 4 and 11
Tachypnoea?
breathing rate more than 20 breaths per minute
What are clinical signs related to specific infections?
increased sputum volume/increased sputum purulence
pus/exudates
rashes
cough
pain on urination
nasal congestion
sore throat
SIRS criteria?
temperature <36 or >38
Pulse > 90bpm
respiratory rate > 20 breaths per minute
white cell count <4 or >11
Sepsis ?
One SIRS criteria + documented infection
What is a documented infection?
a host response to the presence of microorganisms or tissue invasion by microorganisms
Signs of a documented infection?
cellulitis
purulent sputum
X ray changes in the lung
redness
swelling
heat
Patient factors to consider?
age
other conditions/illness
nutritional status
compromised immune system
medications
Exogenous source of infection?
via host or from environment e.g. food, water, soil, coughing and sneezing
Endogenous source of infection?
normal flora from another part of the body e.g. skin pathogens, gut pathogens
What does the clinical diagnosis give?
‘best guess’
patients often treated for this as cultures can take days - weeks to come back from lab
What is taken before treatment?
samples from the site of infection e.g. blood cultures
Why must a sample be taken before treatment?
the bacterial level will lower after the patient has started treatment