what are the links which make up the chain of infection?
The links that make up the chain of infection are:
- Infectious agent – The germ or pathogen that causes disease (for example, bacteria, viruses, fungi, parasites).
- Reservoir – The place where the germ normally lives and multiplies (such as people, animals, water, soil, or surfaces).
- Portal of exit – How the germ leaves the reservoir (such as through coughing, sneezing, blood, feces, or other body fluids).
- Mode of transmission – How the germ travels to another person (for example, direct contact, droplets, airborne, contaminated objects, food, or water).
- Portal of entry – How the germ gets into a new person (for example, mouth, nose, eyes, breaks in the skin, respiratory or urinary tract).
- Susceptible host – A person who can become ill, especially if their immune system is weaker because of age, illness, or other factors.
These six links form the full chain; breaking any one of them helps stop infection from spreading.
