Oral flora
When oral flora the whole is microorganisms referred to the oral cavity colonize. Since the term is mainly used in human medicine , it is mostly restricted to the human oral flora .
The (outdated) term "flora" is based on the opinion that was often held in the past that bacteria and many other microorganisms belonged to the plant kingdom , because the plants occurring in a certain area are called the "flora" of this area. Today one speaks of "microorganism communities" or "microorganism societies" and no longer of "microorganism flora".
Typically hundreds of types of bacteria and yeasts colonize the mouth . For the most part, this oral flora has a protective function against pathogens that could lodge in the oral cavity.
Among the pathogenic bacteria in the oral flora, Streptococcus mutans is of particular importance as one of the causes of dental caries . The colonization concentrates mainly on the bacterial plaque and is only transmitted from the mother to the child after birth. Recent research attempts to selectively displace Streptococcus mutans from the oral flora.
Fungi ( yeasts / Candida, dermatophytes , molds ) occur in healthy people only in the form of superficial colonization of the skin and mucous membranes (cf. mycosis ). Certain types of Candida also live in the throat of most people as harmless saprophytes ; they have been found in around 70% of all healthy subjects . These skin and mucous membrane colonization by Candida are subsumed under the collective term candidosis .
Bite injuries
While rabies and tetanus were the most feared secondary diseases in bite injuries before the introduction of mass vaccinations, the risk of infection from microorganisms in the normal oral flora plays a greater role today . This is given in the case of bites by dogs, cats, monkeys and humans. Especially deep injuries close to the joints lead to an infection more often. The infection rate for all bite injuries treated by a doctor is given as around 15 to 20 percent.
The risk of infection is highest with human bites and is around 50 percent. According to a US publication from 1989, in the second half of the 1930s, i.e. before antibiotics were available, 10 percent of human bite injuries required amputations within an hour of initial medical care , while the amputation rate increased to up to with later care 33 percent increase. However, most of the (hand) injuries here were probably not caused by a bite, but rather as a result of a punch in the face and teeth of the other person.
See also
Individual evidence
- ↑ Karius gegen Baktus - a genetically modified strain of Streptococcus mutans. Archived from the original on January 11, 2007 ; accessed on January 8, 2017 .
- ↑ Michael Gawenda: Immediate therapeutic measures and treatment strategies for bite injuries. In: Deutsches Ärzteblatt . 1996, accessed June 27, 2014 .
- ↑ Peter Kuntz, Edeltraud Pieringer-Müller, Herbert Hof: Risk of infection from bite injuries. In: Deutsches Ärzteblatt . 1996, accessed June 27, 2014 .
- ^ Goldstein EJC: Management of human and animal bite wounds. In: Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology 1989; 21: 1275-127.