Any disease is a single process, naturallypassing through its development through certain stages. The most common is the division of the course of the disease into four stages: the latent phase, the prodromal period, the height and the end of the disease. This approach was formed historically and was based on the study of cyclically occurring infectious diseases. It is difficult to apply this classification to many groups of diseases.
Where does the disease begin
Можно считать, что заболевание начинается с the moment of contact of the human body with certain pathogenic factors, after which the latent, latent phase of the disease begins. If we are talking about an infectious pathology, then this stage is also called incubation. At this time, the causative microorganism (bacteria, viruses or fungi) is already circulating in the circulatory system, interacting with the human body, and the symptoms are still absent. It will appear later, when the prodromal period begins, and the first signs of the disease appear.
The duration of the latent period is very variable.It can be for a few seconds (for cyanide poisoning, for example), or for several years (AIDS, hepatitis B). For many diseases, the beginning and duration of the latent phase cannot be established. During the incubation period, it is possible to take some preventive measures. For example, with the danger of infection with tetanus or rabies. In an infectious process, the pathogen of the disease is not released into the environment at a given time interval.
Precursors of the disease
A person feels sick when he canidentify some violations in their health. The prodromal period is the length of time between the moment when the first signs of the disease appear and the full development of the symptoms of the disease. This term comes from the Greek word, which means "running ahead." This is the phase of the disease, when it is obvious that a person is unwell, but it is still difficult to determine which particular disease struck him.
Особенно это касается инфекционных заболеваний, because the symptoms of the prodromal period are common to most of them. As a rule, the patient complains of indisposition, headache, loss of appetite, worsening of sleep, chills and a slight rise in temperature. This is the body's response to the introduction of the pathogen and its active reproduction, but it is impossible to establish a specific disease only by these signs.
Borders and duration of the prodromal phase
Вообще, определение границ продромального этапа often conditional. It is difficult to isolate the prodromal period of the disease if it is chronic and develops slowly. Between the latent period and the appearance of the first signs of the disease it is still possible to trace the border more or less clearly. But how to understand where it is, if we are talking about the initial symptoms, on the one hand, and already pronounced on the other? Often this is only possible when analyzing a disease after the fact, when it has already ended.
Продолжительность продромального периода обычно makes several days: from 1-3 to 7-10. But sometimes the stage of precursors may be absent, and then immediately after the latent period a violent clinical picture of the disease unfolds. As a rule, the absence of a prodromal period indicates a more severe course of the disease. However, for some diseases it is not typical. The prodromal period ends when common symptoms are replaced by common symptoms. For some infectious diseases, it is the prodromal period that is most infectious.
Specific manifestations of the prodromal period
For some diseases this period hascharacteristic manifestations that allow you to correctly diagnose and begin treatment as early as possible, which is important in case of infectious diseases. Thus, reliable precursors of measles, even before the appearance of a rash, are characteristic small spots on the mucous membrane of the cheeks, lips and gums.
At the site of the entrance gate, infections can sometimesobserved inflammatory changes. Such a focus of inflammation is called a primary affect. Sometimes the lymph nodes are involved in the process at the site of infection, and then they talk about the primary complex. This is characteristic of infections that have entered the body through insect bites or by contact.
Prodromal stage in noncommunicable diseases
Хотя этот этап более ярко выражен при infectious processes, it can be observed in diseases of another nature. There are certain precursors to a heart attack, when attacks of angina pectoris, leukemia, in the initial period of which changes in the cellular composition of the bone marrow, epilepsy, about which disorientation and photosensitivity are predicted, are increasing.
