SOURCES OF INFECTION

AMINU BUHARI NABILA 2006M020

SOURCES OF INFECTION

Humans - Humans as a patient or a carrier that carries the parasite.

Types of carriers -

Healthy carrier : who harbours the pathogens and does not suffer from the pathogenic disease,
Convalescent carrier: recovers from the disease and continues to harbour from the disease, {depending on duration}
Temporary carrier: carries the pathogen for less than six months
Chronic carrier: may carry pathogens for several years or life.
Paradoxical carriers who acquire infection from another carrier.

Animals - Some pathogens affect both humans and animals. Animal infection can be asymptomatic; the animal can act as a reservoir for human infection.

Insects - Blood sucking insects like mosquitoes, mites, ticks, flies, fleas, lice etc can transmit pathogens to human, in some cases the pathogens multiply in the vector or undergone a developmental cycle called biological vector. Some act as reservoir hosts.

Soil and water - Some pathogens survive in soil for long period and transmit the disease such as spores of tetanus, fungi and parasites. Water can get contaminated with pathogenic microorganisms or due to presence of vectors like Cyclops and transmit infections like Guinea worm.

Food - Contaminated food is a source of infection like external harboured pathogens or existing pathogens in food items e.g. meat