What term describes diseases contracted as a result of a medical procedure?

• A. Nosocomial Infections
• B. Iatrogenic Diseases
• C. Occupational Illness
• D. Zoonotic Infections

Answer: (B)

Iatrogenic diseases are those caused by medical care itself—treatments, procedures, or medications that lead to a new illness or complication for the patient. This term directly describes conditions that arise as a result of a medical intervention, such as a post-surgical infection, nerve injury from a procedure, or an adverse drug reaction. The distinction is that the harm comes from the medical care provided, not from the patient’s underlying condition or from other non-medical sources.

Nosocomial infections are hospital-acquired infections, which may be related to the hospital environment or devices and to care processes, but they aren’t necessarily caused by a specific medical procedure. Occupational illness results from work-related exposures, and zoonotic infections come from pathogens transmitted from animals to humans.