Term | Definition |
Aerobe | A MO that needs oxygen to live and grow. |
Anaerobe | A MO that grows best without oxygen. |
Antiseptic | An agent that inhabits the growth of or kills a MO. |
Asepsis | Free from infection or pathogens; the action practice to make and maintain an area or object free from infection or pathogen. |
Cilia | Slender, hair like projections that constantly beat toward the outside to remove MO's from the body. |
Contaminate | To soil or to make impure. An aseptic object becomes "this" when it touches something that is not clean. |
Decontamination | The use of physical/chemical means to remove to remove, inactive or destroy pathogens on the surface item to the point that they are no longer capable of transmitting infectious particles. The surface/item is rendered safe for handling use or disposale. |
Hand Hygiene | The process of cleaning or sanitizing the hands. |
Infection | The condition in which the body, or part of it, is invaded by pathogens. |
Medical Asepsis | Practices that are employed to reduce the number &hinder the transmission of pathogens. |
Microorganisms | A microscopic plant or animal. |
Nonintact skin | Skin that has a break in the surface. It includes, but is not limited to, abrasions, hangnails, cuts, paper cuts, &burns. |
Nonpathogen | A MO that does not normally produce diseases. |
Opportunistic Infection | An infection that results from a defective immune system that can't defend the body from pathogens normally found in the environment. |
Optimum Growth Temperature | The temperature at which an organism grows best. |
Parenteral | Taken into the body through the piercing of the skin barrier or mucous membrane, such as through needle sticks, human bites, cuts and abrasions. |
Pathogen | A disease-producing microorganism. |
Perinatal | Relating to the period shortly before and after birth. |
pH | The degree to which solution is acidic or basic |
Postexposure Prophylaxis | Treatment administration to an individual after exposure to an infectious disease to prevent a disease. |
Regulated Medical Waste | Medical waste that poses a threat to health &safety. |
Perinatal | Relating to the period shortly before and after birth. |
pH | The degree to which solution is acidic or basic |
Postexposure Prophylaxis | Treatment administration to an individual after exposure to an infectious disease to prevent a disease. |
Regulated Medical Waste | Medical waste that poses a threat to health &safety. |
Reservior Host | |