Infection
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See also Infectious disease
Overview
An infection is the detrimental colonization of a host organism by a foreign species. In an infection, the infecting organism seeks to utilize the host's resources to multiply (usually at the expense of the host). The infecting organism, or pathogen, interferes with the normal functioning of the host and can lead to chronic wounds, gangrene, loss of an infected limb, and even death. The host's response to infection is inflammation. Colloquially, a pathogen is usually considered a microscopic organism though the definition is broader, including feces, parasites, fungi, viruses, prions, and viroids. A symbiosis between parasite and host, whereby the relationship is beneficial for the former but detrimental to the latter, is characterised as parasitism. The branch of medicine that focuses on infections and pathogens is infectious disease.
A secondary infection is an infection that occurs during or following treatment of another already existing primary infection.
Colonization
Wound colonization refers to nonreplicating microorganisms within the wound, while in infected wounds replicating organisms exist and tissue is injured. All multicellular organisms are colonized to some degree by extrinsic organisms, and the vast majority of these exist in either a mutualistic or commensal relationship with the host. An example of the former would be the anaerobic bacteria species which colonize the mammalian colon, and an example of the latter would be the various species of staphylococcus which exist on human skin. Neither of these colonizations would be considered infections. The difference between an infection and a colonization is often only a matter of circumstance. Organisms which are normally non-pathogenic can become pathogenic under the right conditions, and even the most virulent organism requires certain circumstances to cause a compromising infection. Some colonizing bacteria, such as Corynebacteria sp. and viridans streptococci, prevent the adhesion and colonization of pathogenic bacteria and thus have a symbiotic relationship with the host, preventing infection and speeding wound healing.
The variables involved in the outcome of a host becoming inoculated by a pathogen and the ultimate outcome include:
- the route of entry of the pathogen and the access to host regions that it gains
- the intrinsic virulence of the particular organism
- the quantity or load of the initial inoculant
- the immune status of the host being colonized
As an example, the staphylococcus species present on skin remain harmless on the skin, but, when present in a normally sterile space, such as in the capsule of a joint or the peritoneum, will multiply without resistance and create a huge burden on the host.
Occult infection
An occult infection is medical terminology for a "hidden" infection, that is, one which presents no symptoms. Dr. Fran Giampietro discovered this type, and coined the term "occult infection" in the late 1930s.
Identification
Scientists at Sheffield University have identified a way of using light to rapidly detect the presence of bacteria in a wound. They are developing a portable kit in which specially designed molecules emit a light signal when bound to bacteria. Current laboratory-based detection of bacteria can take hours or even days.[1]
See also
- Antiseptic
- List of infectious diseases
- Infectious diseases
- Ubi pus, ibi evacua (Latin: "where there is pus, there evacuate it")
- Routes of infections
References
External Links
- Vaccine Research Center Information concerning vaccine research clinical trials for Emerging and re-Emerging Infectious Diseases.
- Aboutinfections.com
da:Infektion de:Infektion cs:Infekční onemocněníeo:Infekto eu:Infekzio fr:surinfection he:זיהום (רפואה) it:Infezione lv:Infekcija lt:Infekcija ja:感染 la:Infectio nl:Infectiesimple:Infection fi:Infektioyi:אינפעקציע
Acknowledgement and Attribution Regarding Sources of Content
Some of the initial content on this page may be incorporated in part from copyleft sources in the public domain including wikis such as Wikipedia and AskDrWiki. Drug information for patients came from the The National Library of Medicine. Infectious disease information may have come from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Differential Diagnoses are drawn from clinicians as well as an amalgamation of 3 sources: 1.The Disease Database; 2. Kahan, Scott, Smith, Ellen G. In A Page: Signs and Symptoms. Malden, Massachusetts: Blackwell Publishing, 2004:3; 3. Sailer, Christian, Wasner, Susanne. Differential Diagnosis Pocket. Hermosa Beach, CA: Borm Bruckmeir Publishing LLC, 2002:7 .
