|
|
By - Pauline W. Fallis, There is a very small percentage of microorganisms that cause disease. We need microorganisms for all kinds of functions so that we can live and enjoy life. The disease causing microorganisms are divided into six classes. The major groups are: Protozoa, Fungi, Bacteria, Viruses, Mycoplasma, and Prions. Protozoa: These are single cell microscopic animals which cause disease in humans and animals. These microorganisms are resistant to many chemical germicides and some are more resistant than the bacterial spores that you use to test your autoclave. Examples of Protozoa are Plasmodium which causes Malaria, Entamoeba histolytica which causes Amebiasis a gastroenteritis, and Giardia lamblia, which causes giardiasis. Fungi: These are uni or multi-cellular plants. The uni-cellular ones are yeasts and the multi-cellular ones are molds. An important pathogen today is Candida, which is a yeast and can cause serious lung infections or athletes foot. Bacteria: These are single-cell plants that can be divided into two subgroups by a staining procedure that will either turn the bacteria red or blue. The ones that stain red are gram negative and those that stain blue are gram positive. They are also named by the shape they take, for instance, cocci are round and bacilli are rod shaped. Depending on the way they are grouped together they are named differently. They either live in air and are called aerobes or live without air and are called anaerobes. Staphyloccocci are in clusters, Diplococci are in pairs and Streptococci are in chains. Bacteria are very important human and animal pathogens (disease causing microorganisms). They are relatively easily killed by chemical germicides and antibiotics when in the vegetative or living and growing state. But when they are in a dormant state, they are called spores and are difficult to kill, due to the protective coat that they wear. Tetanus and Anthrax are two of the diseases caused by spore forming bacteria. Some common gram positive bacteria are Staphylococcus aureus which is normal skin bacteria, but when they invade the lung or a wound they cause serious infections. As a matter of interest, in the early 60 s Infection Control as a discipline was created due to serious Staphylococcus aureus infections in surgical wounds. Clostridium perfingens although normal flora in the intestine has caused outbreaks of food poisoning. Examples of gram negative organisms are: Campylobacter jejuni which causes food poisoning, Salmonella typhi which causes typhoid, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa which may cause serious lung infections. Viruses: These are relatively simple life-forms that may cause disease. As very small microorganisms they must rely on host cells to reproduce. They consist of a center of nulceic acid (DNA or RNA) which is wrapped in a protein coat. Some are even wrapped in another coat or envelope. Special antiviral drugs have been developed to combat viral infections. Germicides kill most viruses.(nonenveloped) but enveloped viruses are not killed as easily. Examples of viruses that cause disease are the Polio virus which is a non-enveloped virus, and the Influenza viruses which are enveloped viruses. Mycobacteria: These are acid fast vegetative bacteria. These very small microorganisms can penetrate the usual surgical mask. So a special high filtration mask has been developed to protect both the health care worker and visitor. Two familiar examples are Mycobacterium tuberculosis which causes TB and Mycobacterium leprae that causes Leprosy. Prions: These are a new group of microorganisms that cause some unusual diseases and we know relatively little about them. They cause Mad Cow disease and Creutzfeldt Jakob disease. The microorganism is not killed by germicides. Prolonged sterilization time in steam autoclaves is the only method known to be effective. Of all the above classes of organisms the first four are the ones that you will need to worry about as electrologists. Many of these organisms may live on the skin without causing any problem, until you break through that skin. Note: In order for you and your clients to be safe, thoroughly wash your hands before and after treatments and make sure that the instruments you use have been processed according to the accepted Canada Health Infection Control Standards and Guidelines. Remember, you are the only one who can make sure that your clients are treated by safe procedures. Only you, can make sure that the client leaves your office in a better condition than when he or she entered. |
