Which of the following statements concerning pathology, infection, and disease is true?

A. Microorganisms that make up the normal microbiota of an individual never cause disease.

B. Pathology refers to the study of structural and functional changes that occur in the body as a result of a disease.

C. The term infection is synonymous with the term disease.

D. The majority of microorganisms are pathogenic.

B

Which of the following is an example of the symbiotic relationship known as mutualism?

A. saprophytic Mycobacterium of the ear

B. E. coli within the large intestine

C. a tapeworm in the gastrointestinal tract of a human

D. Corynebacterium on the surface of the eye

B

Koch's postulates established criteria for proving that a specific organism causes a specific disease. Which of the following is NOT one of the criteria given by Koch's postulates?

A. The pathogen isolated from a pure culture must cause the disease in a healthy lab animal.

B. The same pathogen must be present in every case of the disease.

C. The pathogen must be isolated from inoculated animals and must be different from the original organism.

D. The pathogen must be isolated from the diseased host and grown in pure culture.

C

Which of the following is classified as a latent disease?

A. infectious mononucleosis

B. tuberculosis

C. influenza

D. shingles

D

Which of the following is a fungal zoonosis that can be transmitted by direct contact?

A. tapeworm

B. West Nile encephalitis

C. ringworm

D. Lyme disease

C

Which of the following would be an example of disease transmission via INDIRECT contact?

A. A tick that is infected with Lyme disease bites a hiker, and the hiker gets Lyme disease.

B. Mr. Smith sneezes on an airplane, and the person sitting beside him catches his cold.

C. A student sneezes on her test booklet. The instructor grades it and catches her cold.

D. A restaurant worker has diarrhea caused by Norovirus. He fails to wash his hands adequately before preparing the salad, and his customers get sick.

C

What type of nosocomial infection is likely to arise from intravenous catheterizations?

A. Bacteremia

B. Cutaneous

C. Lower respiratory

D. Urinary tract

E. Surgical

A

How might a patient who is not being treated with an antibiotic still be exposed to an antibiotic?

A. Antibiotics can be used in aerosols, thereby entering the environment.

B. Visitors currently being treated with antibiotics can pass them on to the patient.

C. Health care workers being treated with antibiotics may pass the antibiotic on to the patient.

A

Why are invasive procedures likely to increase the risk of nosocomial infections?

A. Invasive procedures require long term hospital stays, thereby increasing the number of visitors seen by the patient.

B. These procedures allow microbes from the skin to enter the bloodstream of the patient.

C. Invasive procedures must use antibiotics.

D. These procedures are carried out by health care workers, who carry resistant microbes.

B

How can health care workers reduce the occurrence of nosocomial infections?

A. Reduce the number of times they visit a patient

B. Limit the number of visitors who can see the patient

C. Administer all medications orally instead of through injections

D. Practice more stringent aseptic techniques

D

The health of the patient

A. is secondary to the health of the healthcare worker.

B. should be the primary concern of the healthcare worker.

C. is secondary to the health of co-workers in healthcare settings.

B

How can surgeons help to limit nosocomial infections?

A. They should perform surgeries and invasive procedures only when absolutely necessary.

B. They should prescribe as many antibiotics as possible.

C. They should only operate on healthy individuals.

D. They should prescribe immunosuppressive drugs to their patients.

A

If a patient notices a healthcare worker not following suggested precautions,

A. they should immediately wash their hands.

B. they should leave the healthcare facility immediately.

C. they should immediately bring it to the attention of the healthcare worker.

C

Which of the following characteristics of a catheter should be considered, to help minimize the spread of nosocomial infections?

A. Reusable

B. Washable

C. Single-use

D. Inexpensive

E. Long

C

Which of the following statements is true regarding hand washing?

A. Frequent and proper hand washing should be routinely done by patients and by healthcare workers, both prior to and after interaction.

B. Hand washing should be done frequently by patients.

C. Hand washing should be done before and after patient interaction.

D. Hand washing should be done frequently by healthcare workers.

A

Epidemiology is defined as the study of

A. when a disease occurs.

B. where and when a disease occurs, and how it is transmitted.

C. where a disease occurs.

D. how a disease is transmitted.

B

What is the role of epidemiology?

A. To learn what diseases can be caused by respiratory pathogens.

B. To learn how to treat and prevent various diseases.

C. To learn which organisms cause disease.

D. To learn which medicines are effective at killing pathogens.

B

Expected prevalence of a disease is

A. the number of new cases of a disease over a period of time.

B. the anticipated geographical spread of a disease based on past observances.

C. the expected occurrence of a disease based on past observations.

D. the total number of cases of a disease over a period of time.

C

If a disease occurs at a fairly stable rate, it is said to be

A. sporadic.

B. pandemic.

C. endemic.

D. epidemic.

C

Which of the following would be considered a fomite?

A. A fly

B. Contaminated water

C. An infected toy

D. A tick

C

Which of the following would be considered a vector?

A. Water containing bacteria from fecal matter

B. A fly carrying disease from fecal matter to food

C. Water droplets that come from a sneeze from an infected individual

D. Saliva that is transmitted between individuals during kissing

B

When aerosols containing pathogens spread disease from a distance of less than one meter, it is considered

A. waterborne transmission.

B. contact transmission.

C. airborne transmission.

D. vector transmission.

B

Which of the following is considered a major category of transmission of disease?

A. Vector transmission

B. Contact transmission

C. Vehicle transmission

D. Contact, vehicle, and vector transmission

D

Which is an example of vehicle disease transmission?

A. The bite of a mosquito containing malaria

B. The presence of Listeria on undercooked chicken served for dinner

C. The transmission of MRSA from skin to skin contact

D. Touching a telephone with cold viruses on its surface

B

The following choices list several types of diseases, along with factors that may contribute to their emergence. Which disease and associated factor do NOT match?

A. Increased incidence of Lyme disease: increases in deer populations

B. spread of cholera to new regions: modern travel

C. emergence of avian influenza A (H5N1): use of antibiotics

D. increased incidence of malaria: global warming

C

As a health care worker, I am keenly aware of how important it is to avoid harming my patients. I worry about inadvertently transmitting an infectious disease to an already compromised individual. According to the CDC, what is the MOST important thing I can do to avoid this?

A. Wash my hands before interacting with any patient.

B. Wear a lab coat.

C. Shave my head.

D. Wear shoe covers.

A

Which of the following statements about the development of infectious diseases is correct?

A. The period of convalescence is the time during which the person regains health and fully recovers (back to the pre-disease state).

B. The prodromal period is characterized by very severe symptoms.

C. The period of decline is the time when the infected individual's health rapidly deteriorates.

D. During the incubation period, the infected individual exhibits obvious signs of sickness.

A

Malaria is an infectious disease caused by infection with a protozoan. In certain tropical regions, malaria is constantly present. We would say that malaria is a(n) _________ disease in these regions.

A. sporadic

B. epidemic

C. endemic

D. pandemic

C

One effect of washing regularly with antibacterial agents is the removal of normal microbiota. This can result in

A. increased susceptibility to disease.

B. normal microbiota returning immediately.

C. no bacterial growth because washing removes their food source.

D. fewer diseases.

E. body odor.

A

During a six-month period, 239 cases of pneumonia occurred in a town of 300 people. A clinical case was defined as fever 39°C lasting >2 days with three or more symptoms (i.e., chills, sweats, severe headache, cough, aching muscles/joints, fatigue, or feeling ill). A laboratory-confirmed case was defined as a positive result for antibodies against Coxiella burnetii. Before the outbreak, 2000 sheep were kept northwest of the town. Of the 20 sheep tested from the flock, 15 were positive for C. burnetii antibodies. Wind blew from the northwest, and rainfall was 0.5 cm compared with 7 to 10 cm during each of the previous three years.

The etiologic agent of the disease in the situation is

A. pneumonia.

B. wind.

C. sheep.

D. soil.

E. Coxiella burnetii.

E

The yeast Candida albicans does not normally cause disease because of ______.

A. parasitic bacteria

B. the transient microbiota

C. other fungi

D. the normal microbiota

D

A commensal bacterium

A. may also be an opportunistic pathogen.

B. does not receive any benefit from its host.

C. is beneficial to its host.

D. does not infect its host.

E. is beneficial to, and does not infect, its host.

A

The major significance of Robert Koch's work is that

A. diseases can be transmitted from one animal to another.

B. microorganisms are the result of disease.

C. microorganisms can be cultured.

D. microorganisms are present in a diseased animal.

E. microorganisms cause disease.

E

A disease in which the causative agent remains inactive for a time before producing symptoms is referred to as

A. subacute.

B. subclinical.

C. zoonotic.

D. latent.

E. acute.

D

Symptoms of disease differ from signs of disease in that symptoms

A. are changes observed by the physician.

B. always occur as part of a syndrome.

C. are specific for a particular disease.

D. are changes felt by the patient.

E. None of the answers is correct.

D

The graph in the figure shows the incidence of polio in the United States. The period between 1945 and 1955 indicates a(n)

A. pandemic.

B. endemic level.

C. sporadic infection.

D. epidemic level.

E. communicable disease

D

Which of the following is NOT a predisposing factor of disease?

A. lifestyle
B. climate
C. None of the answers are correct; all of these are predisposing factors of disease.
D. occupation
E. genetic background

C

In which of the following patterns of disease does the patient experience no signs or symptoms?

A. decline

B. prodromal

C. convalescence

D. incubation

E. incubation and convalescence

E

Which of the following is a fomite?

A. insects

B. a hypodermic needle

C. pus

D. water

E. droplets from a sneeze

B

Which one of the following is NOT a zoonosis?

A. cat-scratch disease

B. rabies

C. Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome

D. tapeworm

E. None of the answers is correct; all of these are zoonoses.

E

Biological transmission differs from mechanical transmission in that biological transmission

A. requires an arthropod.

B. works only with noncommunicable diseases.

C. involves fomites.

D. involves specific diseases.

E. requires direct contact.

D

A cold transmitted by a facial tissue is an example of which form of disease transmission?

A. vector

B. indirect contact transmission

C. vehicle transmission

D. droplet transmission

B

A nosocomial infection is

A. always present, but is inapparent at the time of hospitalization.

B. always caused by pathogenic bacteria.

C. always caused by medical personnel.

D. only a result of surgery.

E. acquired during the course of hospitalization.

E

Which of the following does NOT contribute to the emergence of infectious diseases?

A. Antibiotic resistance

B. Climatic changes

C. New strains of previously known agents

D. Ease of travel

E. The emergence of infectious diseases can be attributed to all of these

E

Transient microbiota differ from normal microbiota in that transient microbiota

A. cause diseases

B. are found in a certain location on the host

C. are acquired by direct contact

D. are present for a relatively short time

D

Normal microbiota can benefit the host by preventing the overgrowth of harmful microorganisms. This is called

A. microbial antagonism

B. symbiosis

C. mutualism

D. commensialism

A

In commensalism,

A. both organisms benefit

B. one organism benefits, and the other is unaffected

C. both organisms are unaffected

D. one organism benefits at the expense of the other

B

An example of a contagious disease is

A. anthrax

B. tetanus

C. chickenpox

D. rabies

C

Which of the following diseases is NOT spread by droplet transmission?

A. botulism

B. influenza

C. pneumonia

D. pertussis

A