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Glossary of Terms
MRSA
Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus, a potentially deadly
infection that is raising growing concern among the medical
community
VRSA
Vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or VRSA.
It's
a close cousin of MRSA, or Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus
aureus, the antibiotic-resistant infection that killed a Virginia
teenager in 2007. Vancomycin is often the antibiotic of last resort
used to treat a MRSA infection. VRSA has recently been confirmed in
hospital patients in Michigan, though so far no one is known to have
died of VRSA.
Staph
or
staphylococcus
A
category of
bacteria that can cause boils,
blood poisoning, and other
serious
infections
Staphylococcus aureus
the most common cause of staph infections. It is a spherical
bacterium,
frequently living on the skin or in the nose of a person, that can
cause a range of illnesses from minor skin
infections,
such as
pimples,
impetigo,
boils,
cellulitis
and
abscesses,
to life-threatening
diseases,
such as
pneumonia,
meningitis,
endocarditis,
Toxic shock
syndrome (TSS), and
septicemia.
“Superbug”
An
antibiotic-resistant organism, such as MRSA
C-Diff
Clostridium difficile, often simply called C. diff or C. difficile
C.
difficile bacteria are everywhere — in soil, air, water, human and
animal feces, and on most surfaces. The bacteria don't create
problems until they grow in abnormally large numbers in the
intestinal tract of people taking antibiotics or other antimicrobial
drugs. Then, C. difficile can cause symptoms ranging from diarrhea
to life-threatening inflammations of the colon.
“Superbug”
An
antibiotic-resistant organism, such as MRSA
Nosocomial infections
Hospital-acquired infections
CDC
Centers for Disease Control
FDA
Federal Drug Administration
Fluoroquinolones
The quinolones are a family of
broad-spectrum antibiotics. The parent of the group is
nalidixic
acid. The majority of quinolones in clinical use belong
to the subset of fluoroquinolones. Some studies have linked
flouroquinalones to an increased risk of virulent C-difficile
infection.
HAI
Hospital-acquired infection (also nosocomial infection)
CAI
Community-Associated Infection
Pathogen
Any disease-producing agent, esp. a virus, bacterium, or other
microorganism.
VRE
Vanocomycin resistant Enterococci.
Enteroccocci are bacteria that are normally present in the human
intestines and in the female genital tract and are often found in
the environment. These bacteria can sometimes cause infections.
Vancomycin is an antibiotic that is often used to treat infections
caused by enterococci. In some instances, enterococci have become
resistant to this drug and thus are called vancomycin-resistant
enterococci (VRE). Most VRE infections occur in hospitals.
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