Viruses are germs different from bacteria. They cause infections, such as colds and flu. However, antibiotics do not treat infections caused by viruses.
Antimicrobial resistance happens when germs like bacteria and fungi develop the ability to defeat the drugs designed to kill them. That means the germs are not killed and continue to grow. Resistant infections can be difficult, and sometimes impossible, to treat.
Bacteria can develop resistance to certain medicines: Medicine resistance happens when bacteria develop ways to survive the use of medicines meant to kill or weaken them. If a germ becomes resistant to many medicines, treating the infections can become difficult or even impossible.
Acute infections, which are short-lived. Chronic infections, which can last for weeks, months, or a lifetime. Latent infections, which may not cause symptoms at first but can reactivate over a period of months and years.
Eventually, the CD4+ T cell population becomes so depleted that the individual starts to experience other, opportunistic, infections. This marks the beginning of the final phase, commonly known as acquired immune deficiency syndrome or AIDS, which eventually results in death.
Antimicrobial resistance happens when germs like bacteria or fungi no longer respond to the drugs designed to kill them. That means these germs are not killed and continue to grow. It does not mean our body is resistant to antibiotics or antifungals. Antimicrobial resistance is a naturally occurring process.
Persistent infections are characterized as those in which the virus is not cleared but remains in specific cells of infected individuals. Persistent infections may involve stages of both silent and productive infection without rapidly killing or even producing excessive damage of the host cells.
Chronic viral infection underlies a wide variety of medically important diseases that either follow directly from primary infection or may require months, years or even decades to develop.
Streptococcal toxic shock syndrome (STSS) is a rare, but serious bacterial infection. STSS can develop very quickly into low blood pressure, multiple organ failure, and even death.
In adults, recurrent infections are usually due to an anatomic lesion, a functional disorder, or to a secondary cause of immunosuppression.
One well-known example of a chronic infection in humans is HIV, in which the infection cannot be cleared by the immune system and the virus continues to replicate. AIDS results when the immune system is finally overwhelmed by the virus.
If so, these recurrent infections may be a sign of an immunodeficiency disorder. The immune system is smart and has the ability to learn the “face” of a germ and remember it. Once your immune system has successfully battled it, most people are less susceptible to recurring infections caused by that germ.
For example, antibiotics don't work against viruses. Like bacteria, viruses are tiny organisms that can invade your body and cause infection. A cold or the flu is a type of virus. Taking an antibiotic in these cases does not treat the disease.
If you take an antibiotic when you don't need it – for example, when you have a cold or the flu – it can make you feel worse and make your illness last longer. In fact, when used the wrong way, antibiotics can cause more severe illnesses like diarrhea, nausea and rashes.
Feeling tired or fatigued, having a headache, or feeling nauseous are all possible signs of an infection. Swollen lymph nodes in the armpit, groin, or neck may also be a sign that your body is under attack.
People with moderate or severe COVID-19 should isolate through at least day 10. Those with severe COVID-19 may remain infectious beyond 10 days and may need to extend isolation for up to 20 days.