New York: Researchers say people who are infected with novel coronavirus may take five days in ordinary condition to start showing symptoms of the virus.
According to findings, published in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine, researchers at Johns Hopkins University estimated the average incubation period of the killer virus was 5.1 days.
About 97.5% of people who develop symptoms of new coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2 infection will do so within 11.5 days of exposure. And for every 101 suspected cases out of 10,000 individuals, would only develop symptoms after being released from quarantine of 14 days
"Based on our analysis of publicly available data, the current recommendation of 14 days for active monitoring or quarantine is reasonable, although with that period some cases would be missed over the long-term," said study senior author Justin Lessler, Associate Professor at Johns Hopkins University in the US.
For the study, the researchers analysed 181 cases from China and other countries that were detected prior to February 24, were reported in the media. Most of the cases involved travel to or from Wuhan,or exposure to individuals who had been to Hubei,Wuhan capital.
The new estimate of 5.1 days for the median incubation period of SARS-CoV-2 is similar to estimates from the earliest studies of this new virus, which were based on fewer cases. This incubation period for SARS-CoV-2 is in the same range as SARS-CoV.
For MERS-CoV, a coronavirus that has caused hundreds of cases in the Middle East, with a relatively high fatality rate, the estimated mean incubation period is 5-7 days.
According to the researchers, disease incubation period for a new virus makes it easier for epidemiologists to gauge the likely dynamics of the outbreak, and allows public health officials to design effective quarantine and other control measures.
Quarantines typically slow and may ultimately stop the spread of infection, even if there are some outlier cases with incubation periods that exceed the quarantine period, the researchers said.
