Definition: Infection/Inflammation

[Guest guest]

For clarification - the difference between infection and inflammation.

Infection: The growth of a parasitic organism within the body. (A parasitic

organism is one that lives on or in another organism and draws its nourishment

therefrom.) A person with an infection has another organism (a " germ " ) growing

within him, drawing its nourishment from the person. The term " infection " has

some exceptions. For example, the normal growth of the usual bacterial flora in

the intestinal tract is not usually considered an infection. The same

consideration applies to the bacteria that normally inhabit the mouth.

Inflammation: a protective tissue response to injury or destruction of tissues,

which serves to destroy, dilute, or wall off both the injurious agent and the

injured tissues. The classical signs of acute inflammation are pain (dolor),

heat (calor), redness (rubor), swelling (tumor), and loss of function (functio

laesa).