CHAPTER VII. 

 DISINFECTION, STERILIZATION AND ANTISEPSIS. 



The means employed for the destruction of the bacteria and 

 for the prevention of their growth are of interest in several 

 directions: in the prevention of the spread of infectious dis- 

 eases in the avoidance of the infection of wounds, both acci- 

 dental wounds and those produced in operative proceedures; 

 and in the preservation of food-stuffs and other perishable 

 material. 



Disinfection is the term employed to signify the destruction of 

 the infectious agent in the rooms, stables, barns, cars or other 

 ocnfined spaces previously occupied by persons or animals suf- 

 fering from an infectious disease, also the furniture in the rooms 

 and the clothing worn by such persons. It is also used for 

 the process employed destroying the infectious agent in feces, 

 urine, sputa and other excreta from persons suffering from in- 

 fectious disease. The term always implies the presence of an 

 infectious agent which is to be got rid of, it is better to avoid 

 using the term for processes employed in masking or destroy- 

 ing disagreeable odors arising from improperly flushed water- 

 closets or decaying offal. 



Sterilization is used to denote the destruction of bacteria in 

 general. It does not necessarily imply the destruction of 

 pathogenic bacteria. Thus in the preparation of culture 

 media, the vessels and the media themselves are sterilized by 

 means of heat, although there may or may not be pathogenic 

 bacteria in them to start with. 



Antisepsis is the term applied to the process of preventing the 

 growth of bacteria in wounds or in articles of food or elsewhere, 



238. 



