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Definition of Opportunistic Infection

From Ingrid Koo, Ph.D., for About.com

Created: April 08, 2009

About.com Health's Disease and Condition content is reviewed by the Medical Review Board

Definition: An infection that takes advantage of a weakened or absent immune response from immunocompromised individuals.

Several microbes either do not cause disease or cause mild illnesses in healthy people, but can cause infections in people whose immune systems are weakened or absent due to disease or disorders. For example, HIV/AIDS patients (who are immunocompromised) are prone to several opportunistic infections that are relatively harmless to healthy individuals.

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