Term | Definition |
Antiseptic | A substance that kills disease-producing microorganisms but not their spores. An antiseptic is usually applied to living tissue. |
Autoclave | An apparatus for the sterilization of materials, using steam to living |
Contaminate | To soil,stain or pollute;to make impure. |
Decontamination | The use of physical or chemical means to remove or destroy pathogens on an item so that it is no longer capable of transmitting disease;this makes the item safe to handle. |
Detergent | An agent that cleanses by emulsifying dirt and oil. |
Disinfectant | An agent used to destroy pathogenic microorganisms but not their spores. Disinfectants are usually applied to inanimate objects |
Hazardous chemical | Any chemical presents a threat to the health and safety of individual coming into contact with it. |
Incubate | To provide proper conditions for growth and development. |
Load | The articles that are being sterilized. |
MSDS | A sheet that provides information regarding a chemical, its hazards, and measures to take to prevent injury and illness when handling the chemical. |
thermolabile | Easily affected or changed. |
Sterilization | the process of destroying all forms of microbial life, including bacterial spores. |
Noncritical item | An item that comes into contact with intact skin,but not with mucous membranes |
critical item | An item that comes in contact with sterile tissue or the vascular system. |
disinfectant | An agent used to destroy pathogenic microorganisms but not their spores; usually applied to inanimate objects. |
sanitization | A process to remove organic matter from an article and to reduce the number of microorganisms to a safe level as determined by public health requirements. |
spore | A hard, thick-walled capsule formed by some bacteria that contains only the essential parts of the protoplasm of the bacterial cell. |