Incubation period
![In some diseases, as depicted in this diagram, latent period is shorter than incubation period. A person can transmit infection without showing any signs of the disease. Such infection is called subclinical infection.](/Images/godic/202501/12/Concept_of_incubation_period.svg5853.png")
Incubation period is the time elapsed between exposure to a pathogenic organism, a chemical or radiation, and when symptoms and signs are first apparent. In a typical infectious disease, incubation period signifies the period taken by the multiplying organism to reach a threshold necessary to produce symptoms in the host.