Incubation Period

incubation period

[‚iŋ·kyə′bā·shən ‚pir·ē·əd] (medicine) The period of time required for the development of symptoms of a disease after infection, or of altered reactivity after exposure to an allergen. (vertebrate zoology) The brooding period required to bring an egg to hatching.

Incubation Period

(or incubation), the time interval from the moment of infection to the appearance of the clinical symptoms of a disease.

For each infectious disease, the incubation period has a characteristic length, although the length may vary depending on the number of microbes that entered the body, their pathogenicity, the physical condition of the body itself (previous traumas and illnesses, malnutrition, vitamin deficiency), and the site of entry of the infection. Vaccination, seroprophylaxis, and chemotherapy prolong the incubation period.

Table 1. Length of incubation periods of some infectious diseases
	Length of incubation period (in days)
	Most frequent “average”	Minimum	Maximum
Rabies . . . . . . .	40	12	3-6 months (rarely up to 1 year)
Botulism . . . . . .	12-24 hours	1-2 hours	1 (rarely more)
Brucellosis . . . . .	14	7	20-30
Typhoid fever . . .	14	3–4	21
Chicken pox . . . .	11–14	10	21
Influenza . . . . . .	2	a few hours	3
Dysentery . . . . .	3	2 hours	7
Diphtheria . . . . .	5	2	7–10
Whooping cough .	7–9	2	14–15
Measles . . . . . .	8–10	7	17 and 21 (with injection of serum)
Malaria . . . . . . .	10–15	6	31 (in tertian malaria, sometimes 7–11 months)
Epidemic parotitis (mumps) . . . . . .	11	9	21
Poliomyelitis . . . . .	7–14	3	35
Scarlet fever . . .	3–6	a few hours	7–12
Tetanus . . . . . . .	7–14	1	40 (sometimes upon removal of splinters, a few years)
Typhus . . . . . . .	12–14	6	20
Tularemia . . . . . . .	8	1	21
Epidemic cerebrospinal meningitis	2–3	a few hours	7
Foot-and-mouth disease . . . . .	4	2	6

In some infectious diseases (such as measles and diphtheria) causative agents are discharged into the environment during the incubation period; this leads to the infection of other persons. The length of the incubation period is important in discovering the source of infection and sometimes also for establishing a diagnosis.

IA. O. OL’SHANSKIT

incubation period

incubation

[in″ku-ba´shun] 1. the provision of proper conditions for growth and development, as for bacterial or tissue cultures.2. the development of an infectious disease from time of the entrance of the pathogen to the appearance of clinical symptoms.3. the development of the embryo in the egg of oviparous animals.4. the maintenance of an artificial environment for a newborn, especially a infant" >premature infant.incubation period the interval of time required for development; especially the time between invasion of the body by a pathogenic organism and appearance of the first symptoms of disease. Incubation periods vary from a few days to several months, depending on the causative organism and type of disease.

period

[pēr´e-od] an interval or division of time; the time for the regular recurrence of a phenomenon.absolute refractory period the part of the period" >refractory period from phase 0 to approximately −60 mV during phase 3; during this time it is impossible for the myocardium to respond with a propagated action potential, even with a strong stimulus. Called also effective refractory period.blanking period a period of time during and after a pacemaker stimulus when the unstimulated chamber is insensitive to avoid sensing the electronic event in the stimulated chamber.effective refractory period absolute refractory period.ejection period the second phase of systole" >ventricular systole (0.21 to 0.30 sec), between the opening and closing of the semilunar valves, while the blood is discharged into the aorta and pulmonary artery. Called also sphygmic period.gestation period see gestation period.incubation period see incubation period.isoelectric period the moment in muscular contraction when no deflection of the galvanometer is produced.latency period 1. latent period.2. stage" >latency stage.latent period a seemingly inactive period, as that between exposure to an infection and the onset of illness (incubation period) or that between the instant of stimulation and the beginning of response (latency, def. 2).refractory period the period of depolarization and repolarization of the cell membrane after excitation; during the first portion (period" >absolute refractory period), the nerve or muscle fiber cannot respond to a second stimulus, whereas during the period" >relative refractory period it can respond only to a strong stimulus.relative refractory period the part of the period" >refractory period from approximately −60 mV during phase 3 to the end of phase 3; during this time a depressed response to a strong stimulus is possible.safe period the period during the menstrual cycle when conception is considered least likely to occur; it comprises approximately the ten days after menstruation begins and the ten days preceding menstruation. See the section on fertility awareness methods, under contraception.sphygmic period ejection period.supernormal period in electrocardiography, a period at the end of phase 3 of the action potential during which activation can be initiated with a milder stimulus than is required at maximal repolarization, because at this time the cell is excitable and closer to threshold than at maximal potential" >diastolic potential.vulnerable period that time at the peak of the T wave during which serious arrhythmias are likely to result if a stimulus occurs.Wenckebach's period a usually repetitive sequence seen in partial heart block, marked by progressive lengthening of the interval" >P–R interval; see also beat" >dropped beat.

in·cu·ba·tion pe·ri·od

1. time interval between invasion of the body by an infecting organism and the appearance of the first sign or symptom it causes; Synonym(s): incubative stage, latent period (2) , latent stage, stage of invasion2. in a disease vector, the period between entry of the disease organism and the time at which the vector is capable of transmitting the disease to another human host.

incubation period

The time elapsed between infection and appearance of disease Sx. Cf Latent period Epidemiology A period of subclinical or inapparent pathologic changes after exposure, ending with the onset of Sx of an infection.

in·cu·ba·tion pe·ri·od

(in'kyū-bā'shŭn pēr'ē-ŏd) 1. The interval between invasion of the body by an infecting organism and the appearance of the first sign or symptom it causes.
Synonym(s): incubative stage, latent period (3) , latent stage, prodromal stage. 2. In a disease vector, the period between entry of the disease organism and the time at which the vector is capable of transmitting the disease to another human host.

incubation period

The interval between the time of infection and the first appearance of symptoms of the resulting disease. Incubation periods vary widely, from as little as a few hours in the case of CHOLERA to many weeks in some cases of RABIES.

Incubation period

The interval from initial exposure to an infectious agent, such as a virus, and the first symptoms of illness.Mentioned in: Hepatitis A, Hepatitis E, Leprosy, Rubella

in·cu·ba·tion pe·ri·od

(in'kyū-bā'shŭn pēr'ē-ŏd) 1. The interval between invasion of the body by an infecting organism and the appearance of the first sign or symptom it causes.
Synonym(s): latent period (3) , latent stage, prodromal stage. 2. In a disease vector, the period between entry of the disease organism and the time at which the vector is capable of transmitting the disease to another human host.

incubation period

incubation period

Incubation Period

incubation period

Incubation Period

incubation period

incubation

period

in·cu·ba·tion pe·ri·od

incubation period

in·cu·ba·tion pe·ri·od

incubation period

Incubation period

in·cu·ba·tion pe·ri·od

incubation period

Words related to incubation period

noun the period between infection and the appearance of symptoms of the disease

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