contact with the body fluids of a person who has an infection, particularly after sexual contact or when the person coughs or sneezes.

close contact with a person who has a bacterial infection, including touching and kissing.

There are many ways this can occur, including: Many bacterial infections are contagious, meaning that they can be transmitted from person to person. Some viruses even kill host cells as part of their life cycle.Ĭlose contact with a person who has an infection Viruses can invade the cells of your body, using the components of your cells to grow and multiply. That means they require living cells or tissue in which to grow. Like bacteria, they’re very diverse and have a variety of shapes and features. Viruses are another type of tiny microorganism, although they’re even smaller than bacteria. These bacteria are referred to as pathogenic bacteria. Only a handful of bacteria cause infections in humans. They’re very diverse and can have a large variety of shapes and structural features.īacteria can live in almost every conceivable environment, including in or on the human body.

Antibiotics can’t cure a viral infection.īacteria are tiny microorganisms that are made up of a single cell.

Certain types of viral infections are treated with antiviral medications.

Viruses feed off of healthy cells in the body, sometimes killing their host cells as they multiply.

They stem from viruses, which are a piece of genetic material, such as DNA or RNA, coated with protein.

In some cases, bacterial infections may be treated with antibiotics.

Pathogenic bacteria refer to microorganisms that can make humans sick.

Not all bacteria are harmful to humans.

Bacteria may be within or on the human body.

They stem from bacteria, which are single-celled microorganisms.

Viral infections durations