Microorganisms have survived for millions of years because of their ability to adapt to hostile environments. Since the 1940s, bacteria that cause human infections have been exposed to ever-increasing antimicrobial pressure as a result of appropriate and inappropriate use of…
The selection of optimal antibiotic therapy for presumed bacterial infection is based on the assessment of the balance of benefits and risks of specific therapy for each child. Prescribing the right antibiotic(s) early in the course of a serious infection…
Acute Phase Response Stimuli of many kinds, including infection, trauma, hemorrhage, or ischemia, activate the innate immune system through binding of pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) and/or danger-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) to pattern-recognition receptors (PRRs) on the surface of neutrophils, monocytes,…
Viruses The availability of rapid and reliable viral diagnostic tests, particularly nucleic acid amplification tests (NAATs), facilitates decision making in the prevention, treatment, public health, and infection control measures related to viral infections. With specific antiviral therapy available for many…
Bacteria Collection and Processing of Clinical Specimens Proper collection and handling of clinical specimens is a crucial first step in the microbiologic diagnosis of an infectious disease. No degree of laboratory expertise can correct the errors of inappropriately collected and…
Schistosomiasis (i.e., bilharzia or snail fever) is a parasitic infection caused by trematodes that reside in the circulatory system. More than 230 million people worldwide suffer from schistosomiasis, which causes a range of disease from overt clinical manifestations to subtle…
Liver and lung trematodes are hermaphroditic, zoonotic flukes that use snails as intermediate hosts ( Table 284.1 ). Snails are infected by eggs in feces passed into the environment by humans and other mammals. The snails release cercariae that encyst…
More than 70 species of zoonotic, hermaphroditic intestinal flukes can parasitize the human intestine. Most human infections are asymptomatic, but heavy infections are more likely to result in clinical disease. Adult flukes are flat and leaf-shaped, ranging in length from…
Coenurosis is human infection with larval forms of the animal tapeworms Taenia (Multiceps) multiceps and Taenia serialis. The coenurus is a fluid-filled cyst that is a few millimeters to 2 cm or more in diameter. The wall is a thin,…
Echinococcus Granulosus Description of the Pathogen Echinococcus granulosus , which causes cystic echinococcosis, is a cestode whose life cycle involves dogs and other canids as definitive hosts for the intestinal tapeworm. Domestic and wild ungulates are intermediate hosts for the…