Antimicrobial Agents .
Instructions:
Antimicrobial agents are essential components in the treatment of various bacterial infections as they help to kill or prevent the growth of microbes such as bacteria, fungi, and protozoans. Prior to the discovery of antimicrobial agents, treatment options for patients with bacterial infections were limited. For many patients, treatment often resulted in the amputation of limbs or even death. Today, treatment options for bacterial infections typically have a more positive prognosis. Due to the various types of infections presented in patients, it is essential to be able to identify the underlying cause of the infection—whether bacterial or viral—before recommending drug treatments. This will help you identify whether or not an antimicrobial agent would be appropriate and which specific agent would target the infection. In this Assignment, you consider the appropriate use of antimicrobial agents for infections.
To prepare:
•Review this week’s media presentation on principles of antimicrobial therapy, as well as Chapter 8 of the Arcangelo and Peterson text.
•Consider the categories of antimicrobial agents.
•Think about differences between viral and bacterial infections.
•Reflect on why proper identification of the infection is key to selecting the proper antimicrobial agent.
Write a 2- to 3- page paper that addresses the following:
•Describe the categories of antimicrobial agents.
•Describe differences between viral and bacterial infections.
•Explain why proper identification of viral and bacterial infections is key to selecting the proper antimicrobial agent
Solution.
Antimicrobial Agents
Categories of Antimicrobial agents
Diseases and infections may be affected by various types of organisms such as virus, bacteria as well as fungi in both human beings and animals. The pathogenicity of the microorganism is prevented by a drug known as an antimicrobial (Arcangelo, Peterson, Wilbur, & Reinhold, 2013).
Antimicrobial is a word that originated from three words in Greek; anti, meaning against, mikros meaning little and bios meaning life (Nimavat, Joshi, & Jani, 2014). The term generally refers to each and every agent that performs against microbial organisms. The term antimicrobials comprises of different types of agents which acts against various microorganisms that includes; viruses acted upon by antivirals, bacteria acted upon by antibacterial, protozoa acted upon by antiprotozoal and fungi acted upon by antifungal.
Antibacterial drugs are used to prevent the pathogenic activity of bacteria. Antifungal drugs are used to inhibit the fungal activity in the host (Prilutsky, & Marks, 2011). An antiviral agent is used as a drug that prevents the pathogenic activity of a virus. An anti-parasitic drug is used to inhibit the development of the pathogenic parasites.
Difference between viral and bacterial infections
Viruses can be defined as infectious non-living particles which needs a host cell to subsist while they are individually not alive (Arcangelo, Peterson, Wilbur, & Reinhold, 2013).. Viruses require an advanced kind of microscope so that they may be seen since the normal microscope has low power.
Bacteria are prokaryotic microorganisms that are single-celled which are existent in great quantity in hosts that are living and in all areas of the sphere including water and soil (Prilutsky, & Marks, 2011). Naturally, they can be both beneficial and harmful for both human beings and plants as well as all animals that may be in contact with the bacteria. Comparatively, bacteria are quite bigger and are single cells that are living. Bacteria have a number of benefits to the human body and are significant for human survival. Some of the bacteria that are pathogenic infect the human body and course sickness.
Harmful bacteria that cause infections can more or less at all times be cured through the use of antibiotics. Since various kinds of viruses may undergo vaccination against some of them like HIV and common cold causing viruses, they are incurable, although symptoms to such diseases can be treated on condition that the immune of the living host must comprise of a strong system to subsist the kind of infection (Arcangelo, Peterson, Wilbur, & Reinhold, 2013). Strep throat is an example of a disease, which is caused by bacteria while flu is an example of illness that originates from a virus.
Why proper selection is key to selecting the proper microbial agent
The fact that both the infections of a virus and bacteria have symptoms that are similar brings the need for proper identification of the infection since they have different kinds of treatments. During the treatment of bacterial infections, antibiotics can play an important role, but the treatment may not work for the case of viruses. Using antibiotics to treat virus infections may result to contribution of conditions such as allergic reactions, resistance towards antibiotics, toxicity including more costs for healthcare (Arcangelo, Peterson, Wilbur, & Reinhold, 2013). To avoid such conditions when treating either a bacteria or a virus, proper identification of the infection is significant when making a choice for an antimicrobial agent. Diseases and infections caused by pathogens are prevented through the use of antimicrobial agents such as antibacterial drugs, antiviral agents among others.
References
Appropriate initial antibiotic therapy in hospitalized patients with gram-negative infections: systematic review and meta-analysis. (2015) (1st ed.).
Arcangelo, V., Peterson, A., Wilbur, V., & Reinhold, J. (2013). Pharmacotherapeutics for advanced practice (1st ed.).
Nimavat, K., Joshi, K., & Jani, G. (2014). Antimicrobial Agents (1st ed.). Saarbrücken: LAP LAMBERT Academic Publishing.
Prilutsky, D. & Marks, R. (2011). Diagnose Viral and Bacterial Infections. Materials And Methods, 1. http://dx.doi.org/10.13070/mm.en.1.73