Disinfection is the process of what?

• A. Destroying pathogens
• B. Removing dirt
• C. Killing spores only
• D. Recycling equipment

Answer: (A)

Disinfection aims to reduce or eliminate disease-causing microorganisms on surfaces and equipment to lower the risk of infection. This best fits the idea of destroying pathogens, since the purpose is to inactivate or kill the microbes that can cause illness. Cleaning focuses on removing dirt and debris, which helps disinfection work but is not itself disinfection. Some disinfectants aren’t sporicidal, and spores may require sterilization or higher-level disinfection, so disinfection isn’t guaranteed to destroy all spores. Recycling equipment isn’t a part of reducing microbial risk.