MEDICAL

MICROBIOLOGY
DEFINITION OF TERMS

• Microbiology
• It is the study of living organisms of microscopic size.

• Medical microbiology
• This is the subdivision concerned with the causative agents of infectious disease of man, the
response of the host to infection and various methods of diagnosis, treatment and prevention.
PATHOGEN

• Pathogen
• Microbial species that are able to invade and then damage tissue to cause disease. E.g. shigella causes
dysentery (an acute diarrheal illness ).

• Pathogenicity
• Capacity of microorganism to cause disease.

• Opportunistic pathogens
• Micro-organisms that are able only to cause disease in individuals with impaired defences. E.g.
protozoan pneumocystis carinii lives in the respiratory tract of healthy people without causing adverse
effects, but can cause a very serious form of pneumonia in individuals who have an impaired immune
system.
SUSCEPTIBILITY TO INFECTION

• Susceptible means likely to be harmed by a particular thing.

• The body has a range of defenses designed to protect it against invasion by pathogens.
Susceptibility to infection depends on the effectiveness of the defenses. For example
bacteria can’t penetrate intact skin but will enter via non-intact skin.
ENDOGENOUS INFECTION

• Infections caused by the transfer of micro-organisms from one site of the body to another.
Micro-organisms that are present normally as commensals at a particular site of the body
can cause infection if they are introduced elsewhere. For example Escherichia coli, found
normally in the large bowel, cause urinary tract infection if it enters the bladder.
EXOGENOUS INFECTION/CROSS INFECTION

• Infection acquired through the transfer of micro-organism from one person to another.
COLONIZATION

• This is when pathogens can be present on the body without invading the tissues or
infection. The colonization provides a source for cross-infection.
NORMAL FLORA

• Normal flora is the term used to describe the various bacteria and fungi that are
permanent residents of certain body sites, especially the skin, oropharynx, colon, and
vagina.
VIRULENCE

• The capacity of a microorganism for causing disease

• The ability of a microorganism to cause damage to its host.