What You Need To Know About Infectious Disease
How Infection Works
Microbes occupy all of our body surfaces, including the skin, gut, and mucous membranes. Most don’t do us any harm—in fact, many help us survive. But there are certain bacteria, viruses, and other microbial life forms that can cause illness or even death. Here we learn the basics about microbes and the fascinating relationship we have with them.
Explore Other Topics
What do you know about infectious disease?
True or False: If you have a cold or the flu, taking antibiotics will help treat the infection.
-
Sorry, that’s incorrect.
Antibiotics only work on bacterial infections, not viral infections such as influenza and the common cold. In fact, inappropriate use and overuse of antibiotics contributes to the emergence of drug-resistant bacteria.
-
Correct!
Antibiotics only work on bacterial infections, not viral infections such as influenza and the common cold. In fact, inappropriate use and overuse of antibiotics contributes to the emergence of drug-resistant bacteria.
Infectious Disease Defined
- Mortality
The number of deaths in a given time or place.
National Academies
Search the National Academies Press website by selecting one of these related terms.
Source Material
- Ending the War Metaphor: The Changing Agenda for Unraveling the Host-Microbe Relationship—Workshop Summary (2006)
- Microbial Evolution and Co-Adaptation: A Tribute to the Life and Scientific Legacies of Joshua Lederberg (2009)
- The Impact of Globalization on Infectious Disease Emergence and Control: Exploring the Consequences and Opportunities—Workshop Summary (2006)
- Infectious Disease Movement in a Borderless World—Workshop Summary (2010)
- Microbial Threats to Health: Emergence, Detection, and Response (2003)