Asepsis

• Freedom from disease-causing microorganisms.

  asepsis
• Growth of microorganisms in the body tissue where they are not usually found.

  Opposite of Asepsis

  infection
• Microorganism produces no clinical evidence of disease.

  Asymptomatic or subclinical
• A detectable alteration in normal tissue function.

  Disease
• Severity or harmfulness of a microorganism.

  Virulence
• Example of Virulence: (different variants of COVID-19)

  UK variant - very communicable but it causes fewer symptoms compared to the African variant.

  the virulence of the UK variant is less than the African variant
• A condition resulting from the transmission of an infectious agent from one individual to another.

  Communicable Disease
• Ability to produce disease

  Pathogenicity
• a microorganism that causes disease.

  pathogen
• Causes disease only in a susceptible individual.

  Opportunistic pathogen
• patient has an increased risk of having a disease because they have underlying conditions that easily received communicable disease that make them susceptible.


  Susceptible individual
• The way to decrease the possibility of transferring microorganisms from one place to another.

  Aseptic Technique
• Includes all practices intended to confine a specific microorganism to a specific area, limiting the number, growth, and transmission of microorganisms.

  Medical Asepsis
• absence of almost all microorganisms

  Clean
• means likely to have microorganisms

  Dirty
• Also known as "sterile technique"

  Surgical Asepsis
• Refers to activities that keep area or object free of all microorganisms

  Surgical Asepsis
• Most common

  Live and can be transported through air, water, food soil, body tissues & fluids & inanimate things (fomites)

  Bacteria
• consist primarily of nucleic acid

  Needs to enter living cells in order to reproduce

  Viruses
• They are not alive but carry genetic information and when they come in contact with the cells in the body they become alive and reproduce causing the disease.

  Another challenge for them is to really get into the cells of the body so that they can reproduce.

  Viruses
• Include yeast and molds


  fungi
• normal flora of the vaginal canal but becomes opportunistic when the normal flora is disrupted. The good bacteria that control this type of fungi are lessened, common reason is intake of antibiotics.

  Candida albicans
• Live on other living organisms

  Include protozoa (i.e. malaria, entamoeba histolytica - causes amoebiasis) & arthropods (mites, fleas, & ticks)


  parasites
• Types of Infection


  local vs systemic

  acute vs chronic

  nosocomial infections
• limited to a specific part of the body where the microorganisms remain.

  Local
• microorganisms spread and damage different parts of the body.


  Systemic
• culture of the person's blood reveals microorganisms.

  This is confirmed through a culture - a person's blood is extracted, then the microorganism of the blood sample is allowed to grow.

  Bacteremia
• When bacteremia results in systemic infection.

  Septicemia
• appear suddenly or last a short time

  Acute
• occur slowly, over a long period, and may last months or years


  chronic
• Infections that originate in the hospital

  Develop during a client's stay in a facility or manifest after discharge

  May also be acquired by working in the facility personnel

  Nosocomial Infections
• May originate from the client themselves (an --- source) or from the client's environment & hospital personnel (--- source)

  endogenous; exogenous
• direct result of diagnostic or therapeutic procedures

  Iatrogenic infections
• normal defenses have been lowered by treatment or illness


  Compromised host
• chain of infection


  infectious agent, reservoir, portal of exit, mode of transmission, portal of entry, susceptible host
• Any microorganism capable of producing infection

  When referring to a component of the chain of infection

  Etiologic Agent (GERMS)
• Will depend on the following:

  Number present

  Virulence (ability to produce disease) and potency

  Ability to enter the body

  Susceptibility of the host

  Ability to live in the host's body

  Etiologic Agent (GERMS)
• Sources of microorganisms


  Reservoir (WHERE GERMS LIVE)
• Reservoir Common examples:


  Other humans

  Client's own microorganisms

  Plants

  Animals

  General environment
• A reservoir of a specific infectious agent that usually does not manifest any clinical signs of disease.

  Carrier