Disinfection

1. [noun] disinfection describes a process that eliminates many or all pathogenic microorganisms, except bacterial spores, on inanimate objects (Tables 1

Source: https://www.cdc.gov/infectioncontrol/guidelines/disinfection/introduction.html

2. [noun] in health-care settings, objects usually are disinfected by liquid chemicals or wet pasteurization. Each of the various factors that affect the efficacy of disinfection can nullify or limit the efficacy of the process. Factors that affect the efficacy of both disinfection and sterilization include prior cleaning of the object; organic and inorganic load present; type and level of microbial contamination; concentration of and exposure time to the germicide; physical nature of the object (e.g., crevices, hinges, and lumens); presence of biofilms; temperature and pH of the disinfection process; and in some cases, relative humidity of the sterilization process (e.g., ethylene oxide). Unlike sterilization, disinfection is not sporicidal. A few disinfectants will kill spores with prolonged exposure times (3–12 hours); these are called chemical sterilants . At similar concentrations but with shorter exposure periods (e.g., 20 minutes for 2% glutaraldehyde), these same disinfectants will kill all microorganisms except large numbers of bacterial spores; they are called high-level disinfectants . Low-level disinfectants can kill most vegetative bacteria, some fungi, and some viruses in a practical period of time (≤10 minutes). Intermediate-level disinfectants might be cidal for mycobacteria, vegetative bacteria, most viruses, and most fungi but do not necessarily kill bacterial spores. Germicides differ markedly, primarily in their antimicrobial spectrum and rapidity of action. See: https://www.cdc.gov/infectioncontrol/guidelines/disinfection/introduction.html ; Accessed May 28 2019 More simply put, disinfection is the process of eliminating or reducing harmful organisms from inanimate objects or surfaces while sterilization is the process of killing all microorganisms

Source: https://www.cdc.gov/infectioncontrol/guidelines/disinfection/introduction.html