DEFINITION OF TERMS:

• Resident Flora- Collective vegetation in a given area. • Disease- Detectable alteration in normal tissue
function. • Asepsis is the absence of disease-causing bacteria. • Medical Asepsis is the process of
confining a certain microorganism to a specific location.

(clean, Dry) • Surgical Asepsis- aka. Sterile technique, practices that keep an area or object free of all
microorganisms. • Sepsis- condition in which acute organ dysfunction occurs secondary to infection. •
Colonization- process by which strains of microorganisms become resident flora. • Disinfection- destroys
all pathogenic organisms, except spores. • Sterilization: destroys all microorganisms, including spores.
INFECTION- The invasion of bodily tissue by pathogenic microorganisms that grows and proliferate in
areas where they are not usually found, resulting in tissue injury that can progress to disease.

Types of Microorganisms that cause infections: • Bacteria- most common infection causing
microorganisms • Viruses- nucleic acid, must enter living cells in order to reproduce • Fungi- yeast and
molds • Parasites- live on other living organisms • RESERVOIR- a host which allows the microorganism to
live and grow, considered as the source of microorganisms. May be the body, plants, animals, general
environment Carrier: A person or animal reservoir of a specific infectious agent, usually does not
manifest any clinical signs of disease. • PORTAL OF EXIT (From Reservoir): a path for the microorganism
to escape from the host. ✓ Respiratory Tract (Nose/Mouth) ✓ Gastrointestinal Tract
(Mouth/Anus/Ostomies/Feces) ✓ Urinary Tract (Urethral meatus and urinary diversion) ✓ Reproductive
Tract (Vagina/Urinary Meatus/Semen/Urine) ✓ Blood (Open wound/Needle puncture site/Disruption of
open skin/mucous membrane) ✓ Tissue (Drainage from a cut or wound/Transplant organs) • MODE OF
TRANSMISSION Method of Transmission: 1. Direct Transmission- immediate and direct transfer from
person to person Droplet: within 1m (3ft) of each other, e.g. Sneezing, coughing. 2. Indirect
Transmission- vehicle borne or vector borne Vehicle-borne: Any substance that serves as intermediate
means to transport and introduce an infectious agent into a susceptible host through a suitable portal of
entry. (Fomites-inanimate objects e.g. handkerchief, toys, utensil) Vector-borne: Animal or flying or
crawling insects