Rotavirus - incubation period

Rotavirus gastroenteritis is mainly diagnosed in children. But an adult can also catch an infection. Let's consider, how the incubation period proceeds and when the risk to catch a rotavirus is high?

The incubation period in adults with rotavirus

If you look at the rotavirus through a microscope, you can see that the microorganism looks very much like a wheel with a thick bushing. So he got the name from the word rota, which in Latin means "wheel".

The infection is widespread enough, it occurs in most countries. It is noted that 90% of people present in the blood specific antibodies to rotavirus. If a person is hospitalized with severe diarrhea , in half of the cases it turns out that our "hero" is the reason.

Infection occurs by an alimentary route, that is, through food that has undergone inadequate sanitation.

Then the infection occurs according to the following scheme:

1. The virus penetrates into the upper parts of the gastrointestinal tract. The most common multiplication of the microorganism occurs in the upper part of the 12-colon.
2. In this case, there is no general intoxication of the body, therefore, the virus does not spread through the blood or lymph.
3. As a result of the penetration of viruses into the sections of the small intestine, the dying of mature cells occurs. Young do not have time to form sufficiently and are unable to perform the functions assigned to them.
4. Absorption of nutrients, in particular, carbohydrates, is violated, which causes severe diarrhea.

The time required for adaptation of the virus in the body is called the incubation period. If it is a rotavirus, the incubation period is from 15 hours to 7 days, after which the first symptoms appear. By the way, after recurring once with rotavirus, do not think that there will be no relapse disease. A person develops unstable immunity to a microorganism and, if the defense is weakened, the pathogenic microorganism can again be attacked.

During the incubation period, rotavirus does not pose a danger to others. But with the initial symptoms of the disease, the risk of infection increases, as the microorganism is released along with the calves. With insufficient sanitation, a sick person is able to infect the entire family. By the way, quite often in adults the pathology proceeds without the expressed symptomatology and the patient himself does not suspect that it is contagious.