S1 - Infectious Disease Basics Flashcards
Define epidemic.
An epidemic is a period of time with a higher than expected incidence rate but over a broader geographic region.
Define endemic.
The term endemic refers to a region where there is a persistent baseline incidence and prevalence rate.
Define pandemic.
A pandemic is an epidemic where the disease is being actively transmitted on multiple continents.
Define outbreak.
An outbreak is defined as a higher than expected incidence rate tied to a geographic focal point.
What are some modes of infectious disease transmission?
Airborne water-borne fecal-oral vector-borne fomite perinatal food-borne animal bites sexual transmission
Define incubation period.
The time between being infected with a pathogen and showing symptoms (Actively dividing pathogen)
Define latency period.
The time between being infected with a pathogen and showing symptoms (Non-actively dividing pathogen)
What is the difference between the latency period and the incubation period?
In an incubation period, the pathogen is actively dividing. In a latency period, it is not.
Define infectious dose.
The number of a certain type of pathogenic microb needed in order to cause disease in an infected individual.
What is the difference between eradication and elimination?
Eradication refers to the complete removal of a disease from the world (E.g. smallpox).
Elimination refers to the complete removal of a disease from a specific geographic region (E.g. polio).
Define pathogen.
A microorganism that can cause disease.
Are all infectious diseases widely contagious?
No (Think botulism or tetanus). They are infectious but not widely transmissible from person to person.
Describe fomite transmission.
Touching surface, object or person
Describe airborne transmission.
Respiratory drops in the air (Due to sneezing, coughing, breathing)
Describe vector-borne transmission.
Carried by non-host species to host (Typically insects)
Describe fecal-oral transmission.
Ingesting microscopic amounts of contaminated fecal matter
What are some other types of modes of transmission?
Water-borne Perinatal (mother to child) Food-borne Animal bites (Zoonotic) Sexual transmission
What are anti-helminthic drugs?
Anti-parasitic drugs
What are antibiotic drugs?
Drugs that kill bacteria or interfere with bacterial growth
What is a non-pharmacological intervention?
Non-drug related treatments.
E.g. hand washing, exercise, isolation of infected individuals
What are the characteristics of a bacteria?
Prokaryotic cells that can both be helpful and harmful to humans. They reproduce on their own (Unlike viruses).
Helpful bacteria work as our microbiome and protect us and help us with digestion.
What are the characteristics of a virus?
They are not alive. They are protein shells (Capsids made of protomers) that contain genetic material (Single- or double-stranded DNA or RNA) and require a host cell in order to replicate themselves. They hijack the host cell’s enzymes and other machinery.
Viral glycoproteins allow the cell to interact with host cells in order to inject their genetic material or to be completely endocytosed.
More complex viruses sometimes have a lipid coat around their capsid.
What are the characteristics of a parasite?
Multicellular (Usually) eukaryotic organisms (Like us). Things like malaria, leishmaniasis, hookworm, guinea worm, etc.
