Download Study guide Ch 5

4.23.12 Ch 5 study guide
Soap and water (a little bleach) is usually sufficient for controlling growth in daily life. Must have better
methods for hospitals and labs, to cut down on contamination (some things need to be sterile).
Understand the difference between sterile and disinfected. What is pasteurization?
Why are there different BSL (biosafety levels) designations for different labs? What are some
characteristics of the kinds of bacteria and viruses one can work with in each type of lab?
What is a nosocomial infection? Many of these infections (like MRSA) are antibiotic resistant. How can
nosocomial infections be transmitted?
What nosocomial infections did we talk about? Most share the trait of high antibiotic resistance. What
kind of infection do they cause? Which infection can form a biofilm? What are some reasons we are
concerned about bacteria with vancomycin resistance (and how does this relate to MRSA)?
You should be able to list good hospital practices (such as washing hands).
What is the barrier-nursing technique and when is it used?
What are the levels of microbial control (specifically sterilization vs disinfection vs decontamination)?
When do we use pasteurization?
What are some concerns when picking out an antimicrobial treatment?
What is autoclaving? What kinds of materials can be put into an autoclave? Is it sterilizing or
decontaminating? Is it more effective (or at least faster) than dry heat?
What kinds of materials would you filter sterilize? Use ionizing radiation?
When would it be appropriate to simply boil water instead of autoclaving (for instance, when camping)?
What are the limitations of UV radiation as a disinfection method (also, think of Lab 12)? How does
pasteurization work?
You should be familiar with the different classes of sterilization and disinfection chemicals. You should
be able to identify which can sterilize and which are just disinfection (but just the classes like aldehydes,
ethylene oxide gas, halogens, etc). Why don’t we always use sterilizing chemicals? What might be safe
to use on food preparation surfaces?
What are antimicrobial surfaces? Why might we want to replace the fixtures in ICU wards with copper
alloys?