Duration of Pfeiffer's glandular fever

introduction

Pfeiffer's glandular fever or infectious mononucleosis - as it is called medically correct - is an infectious disease that is caused by the so-called Epstein-Barr virus.
Compared to most infectious diseases, Pfeiffer's glandular fever is a lengthy affair. As always, the duration of the illness depends on the physical conditions, the state of health and other factors of the person concerned and thus varies greatly.

Duration of the entire illness

Like every infectious disease, infectious mononucleosis begins with the so-called incubation stage, i.e. the time in which the pathogens multiply but humans are not yet aware of the disease.
With the Epstein-Barr virus, it can be up to 7 weeks, but at least one week. This is followed by the actual illness phase. It also usually lasts for several weeks, but has the advantage that, as with other diseases, the person affected is not too weak to carry out their everyday duties and light physical work.
In some cases, after the visible and palpable findings have subsided, there is a period of physical weakness, the so-called "fatigue", which in the worst case can become a chronic permanent condition.
In general, it can be said that the older the child gets, the longer the disease lasts - the Epstein-Barr virus is a typical disease of youth.

Duration of symptoms

The symptoms of Pfeiffer's glandular fever, i.e. primarily the exhaustion or tiredness or weariness, which doctors also call fatigue, last for several weeks.
Further symptoms are whitish, purulent coatings on the tonsils, an inflammation of the pharynx and a general, light fever with temperatures around 38 to 38.5 degrees Celsius.
In about half of all cases there is also a swelling of the spleen.
While the latter symptoms, i.e. those that are tangible, can last for around two weeks, the exhaustion usually lasts a few more weeks.
As a rule, you can assume four to six weeks here.

You can find out more about the symptoms of this disease on our website You can recognize Pfeiffer's glandular fever by these symptoms

Duration of the incubation period

As already indicated above, Pfeiffer's glandular fever has a very long duration and an already unusually long incubation period.
The incubation phase during which the pathogens multiply in the human body can last anywhere from one to seven weeks. This in turn depends on the pathogen load that you received at the beginning and the generation time of the pathogen, as well as the immune competence of the affected body.

Read more about the topic here: Incubation period of Pfeiffer's glandular fever

Duration of the risk of infection

Infectious mononucleosis has been nicknamed "Kissing Disease" in the English-speaking world, as the pathogens preferentially spread via infectious saliva. Until exactly when this infectiousness will continue to exist is difficult to say, as you can set small clear cut-offs, as is the case with other diseases.
In the specialist literature there is also no clear information in this regard, only a reference that the saliva can still be contagious weeks after the actual illness.

Read more about this: Pfeiffer's glandular fever- How contagious is it really?

Length of sick leave

How long the patient is on sick leave mainly depends on the attending physician and the wishes of the patient.
As already mentioned, Pfeiffer's glandular fever does not cause complete depression, so that one no longer feels able to work physically. Rather, those affected feel a weakness that extends over a period of several weeks.
Often, patients only come to the doctor after several weeks of persistent exhaustion. If the doctor makes the correct diagnosis, the sick leave can last for two weeks from here. If the doctor does not recognize the illness and only suspects a stress-related exhaustion, the sick leave will last at most a few days in order to give the patient time to cope with the stress.
However, these days are not sufficient to cure the long-drawn-out illness. Those affected usually need several weeks until the illness is over and they are fully operational again.

Duration until reactivation

A general statement is not possible in this regard. The underlying pathogens - Epstein-Barr viruses - remain similar to the herpes viruses in certain body cells. There they wait until the immune system is weakened; be it through stress, another illness or the like and then ensure a recurrence of the disease symptoms by starting to multiply again.
However, these are often so weak that the person concerned does not notice them.
It can be worse with the "chronic form" of Pfeiffer's glandular fever. Those affected then suffer permanently from a feeling of weakness.

Ultimately, the time it takes to reactivate is completely different from person to person.

Duration of the chronic form

By and large, the “duration” of the chronic form often depends on when it is diagnosed as the disease causing long-term fatigue.
The symptoms of the chronic form of Pfeiffer's glandular fever can be very diverse. The blood test for specific antibodies usually brings clarity, as the value for the Epstein-Barr virus is clearly increased. However, months or even years can pass up to this point. The Epstein-Barr virus is often not considered by many doctors, which is why it could be responsible for more diseases than is widely assumed.

Find out more about the topic here: Chronic Pfeiffer's glandular fever

Duration in the child

It is extremely difficult to make a statement about the duration of illness in children. The course of the disease is still very inconspicuous at this age (at least in early childhood). The disease usually presents itself here only with a brief sore throat and a slight fever, which subsided after a few days. There are few reports of persistent exhaustion or the like in young children.
Typically, Pfeiffer's glandular fever occurs in adolescence, when the illness can last for several weeks. The older the child, the longer the symptoms of the disease are present.

More about this on our website Glandular fever in the child

Duration in the baby

In babies or toddlers, Pfeiffer's glandular fever usually does not last as long as in older patients. The differentiation from other “normal” viral diseases is very difficult at this age, as the symptoms of the disease hardly differ.
Therefore, from a well-founded medical point of view, a statement in this regard is very difficult.
As already mentioned, it can be assumed that the disease will not last as long as it would in older children or adults.

You can find more about this on our website Glandular fever in babies

Duration until you can do sport again?

With the resumption of physical activity one should be careful with glandular fever. In about 50% of the cases, the disease is accompanied by swelling of the spleen. If this is used too much during sport, the spleen capsule can tear. In the worst case scenario, this culminates in the victim bleeding to death.
As a rule, those affected do not feel physically like exercising in the first few weeks of the disease and take it easy on their own.
It will usually take several weeks before you can start exercising again. In order to prevent injuries to the spleen, it is advisable to consult a doctor to have the size of the spleen measured and to obtain his or her consent.

You may also be interested in this topic: These symptoms show you a ruptured spleen

Duration of antibiotic use

Taking antibiotics is not an option for Pfeiffer's glandular fever - as a viral disease. According to more recent findings, antivirals (such as acyclovir) can be used to curb virus replication.
It is not uncommon for the person concerned to have an allergic reaction when taking antibiotics.

Read how Pfeiffer's glandular fever is correctly treated on our website Treatment of glandular fever