Covid-19 Incubation Period : Travel Risks

A recent research that came up with an estimate of the Covid-19 incubation period clearly shows why traveling abroad comes with serious risks.

Funded by the U.S. CDC, by the National Institute of General Medicine and National Institute of Infectious Diseases, as well as by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, the research findings had established the timeframe within which the new coronavirus develops symptoms indicating that a person has been infected.

The findings have underscored the dangers of traveling abroad especially for tourists intending to explore densely crowded tourist destinations. Although travel and tour operators are trying to stave off the catastrophic impact of the coronavirus outbreak by promoting alternative travel destinations, there is really no telling where the plague will hit next. There is always the danger that somewhere out there, someone became a Covid-19 disease carrier without knowing it, whilst continuing to travel until he or she goes home.

Covid-19 Incubation Period as Determined by U.S. Medical Researchers

A host of medical researchers led by Stephen A. Lauer, M.D. PhD has determined that it takes about 5.1 days before an infected person starts showing signs of unwellness leading to the coronavirus disease. The incubation period could extend up to 11.5 days before common flu symptoms like cough and colds, advance and turn the infection into a full-blown case of Covid-19 infection.

The research team made the estimation based on their analyses of news reports and interviews of people outside of China, who were confirmed to have been infected by Covid-19. Based on the time frame extrapolated from the data gathered, it became apparent that Covid-19 like SARS, has an incubation period that is much longer than that of the common flu.

The long incubation period of the virus made it possible for travelers to complete their tour and return home without showing any symptoms of infection. According to the study, 97 percent (97%) of those who tested positive for the Covid-19 disease, experienced the symptoms after 11.5 days from day of infection.

That being the case, many of the infected traveled to places in Asia where Chinese nationals could have immediately gone to, in order to avoid the lockdown when the disease broke out in Wuhan, China. Unknowingly, some tourists who traveled in those locations, particularly cruise ship passengers, had been infected and had transmitted the virus; causing the rapid spread of Covid-19 across the globe.