Sterilization
Process of destroying all microorganisms (including endospores) or viruses within or on a product.
Does sterilization remove prions
No, because they are hard to get rid of, heat-resistant, would need to be targeted individually
Sterilant
chemical that removes all microbes
Disinfection
Product that kills microorganisms or viruses within or on product, but SOME microbes may remain
Disinfectant
chemical used to destroy MOST microbes on an inanimate object
Types of Disinfectants
"cide" = treatments that kill "static" = treatments that inhibit rather than kill
Germicide
a disinfectant that kills microorganisms & viruses
Bactericide
a disinfectant used to kill vegetative forms of bacteria, but not usually endospores
Fungicide
a disinfectant used to kill fungus
Virucide
a disinfectant used to kill viruses
Bacteriostatic or fungistatic agent
chemical or condition that prevents growth of bacteria/fungus, but does not kill them
Antiseptic
Chemical that is non-toxic enough to be used on human tissue
Decontamination
Sanitizer
chemical used to decontaminate.
Factors relating to antimicrobial action
Time of contact # of microbes Temperature/pH D value Chemical concentration Type of microbe Extraneous materials
Time of Contact
Number of microbes
D value
Decimal reduction time
= time to kill 90% of bacteria present
- D value is usually constant
D value example
if D= 2 minutes, then a population of 100 would be reduced to 10 in 2 minutes and to 1 in 4 minutes.
Shows the time of contact and number of microbes affect the action of the disinfectant
Temperature and pH
Concentration of Chemical disinfectant
Types of microbes
Least resistance
Moderate resistance
Highest resistance
Least resistance microbes
vegetative forms of most bacteria and viruses with membranes
Moderate resistance microbes