Disease or Syndrome
Bacterial Infections
[ bak-teer-ee-uhl, -al in-fek-shuhns ]
Subclass of:
Bacterial Infections and Mycoses
Definitions related to bacterial infections:
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(bacterial disease) Infections and associated diseases caused by bacteria, general or unspecified.CRISP ThesaurusNational Institutes of Health, 2006
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An acute infectious disorder caused by gram positive or gram negative bacteria.U.S. FDA GlossaryU.S. Food & Drug Administration, 2021
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An acute infectious disorder that is caused by gram positive or gram negative bacteria; representative examples include pneumococcal, streptococcal, salmonella, and meningeal infections.NCI ThesaurusU.S. National Cancer Institute, 2021
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An infection caused by a bacterium.NICHD Pediatric TerminologyU.S. National Cancer Institute, 2021
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Bacteria are living things that have only one cell. Under a microscope, they look like balls, rods, or spirals. They are so small that a line of 1,000 could fit across a pencil eraser. Most bacteria won't hurt you - less than 1 percent of the different types make people sick. Many are helpful. Some bacteria help to digest food, destroy disease-causing cells, and give the body needed vitamins. Bacteria are also used in making healthy foods like yogurt and cheese. But infectious bacteria can make you ill. They reproduce quickly in your body. Many give off chemicals called toxins, which can damage tissue and make you sick. Examples of bacteria that cause infections include Streptococcus, Staphylococcus, and E. coli. Antibiotics are the usual treatment. When you take antibiotics, follow the directions carefully. Each time you take antibiotics, you increase the chances that bacteria in your body will learn to resist them causing antibiotic resistance. Later, you could get or spread an infection that those antibiotics cannot cure.MedlinePlusU.S. National Library of Medicine, 2021
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Infections by bacteria, general or unspecified.NLM Medical Subject HeadingsU.S. National Library of Medicine, 2021
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Bacterial disease, any of a variety of illnesses caused by bacteria. Until the mid-20th century, bacterial pneumonia was probably the leading cause of death among the elderly. Improved sanitation, vaccines, and antibiotics have all decreased the mortality rates from bacterial infections, though...Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc., 2020
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