period
[pēr´e-od] an interval or division of time; the time for the regular recurrence of a phenomenon.
blanking period a period of time during and after a pacemaker stimulus when the unstimulated chamber is insensitive to avoid sensing the electronic event in the stimulated chamber.
ejection period the second phase of
ventricular systole (0.21 to 0.30 sec), between the opening and closing of the semilunar valves, while the blood is discharged into the aorta and pulmonary artery. Called also
sphygmic period.
isoelectric period the moment in muscular contraction when no deflection of the
galvanometer is produced.
latent period a seemingly inactive period, as that between exposure to an infection and the onset of illness (
incubation period) or that between the instant of stimulation and the beginning of response (
latency, def. 2).
relative refractory period the part of the
refractory period from approximately −60 mV during phase 3 to the end of phase 3; during this time a depressed response to a strong stimulus is possible.
safe period the period during the
menstrual cycle when
conception is considered least likely to occur; it comprises approximately the ten days after
menstruation begins and the ten days preceding
menstruation. See the section on
fertility awareness methods, under
contraception.
supernormal period in electrocardiography, a period at the end of phase 3 of the
action potential during which activation can be initiated with a milder stimulus than is required at maximal
repolarization, because at this time the cell is excitable and closer to threshold than at maximal
diastolic potential.
vulnerable period that time at the peak of the T wave during which serious arrhythmias are likely to result if a stimulus occurs.
Miller-Keane Encyclopedia and Dictionary of Medicine, Nursing, and Allied Health, Seventh Edition. © 2003 by Saunders, an imprint of Elsevier, Inc. All rights reserved.
la·ten·cy phase
in psychoanalytic personality theory, the period of psychosexual development in children, extending from about age 5 to the beginning of adolescence at age 12, during which the apparent cessation of sexual preoccupation stems from a strong, aggressive blockade of libidinal and sexual impulses in an effort to avoid oedipal relationships; during this phase, boys and girls are inclined to choose friends and join groups of their own sex.
Farlex Partner Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012
latency period
Epidemiology A period of subclinical or inapparent pathologic changes following exposure to a noxious agent, ending with the onset of Sx of disease. Cf Incubation period Psychology See Psychosexual development Virology 1. A period in which a virus–eg, EBV, HSV, HIV present in the body is undetectable or asymptomatic; viral LPs are attributed to a lack in host factors critical for expressing early viral gene products; during latency the virus absconds itself in certain cells–eg, EBV in epithelial cells and B lymphocytes; activation of specific cellular–host transcription factors in response to extracellular stimuli may induce the expression of viral regulatory proteins. leading to a burst of lytic viral replication.
2. The period that follows the 1º infection–chickenpox in Pts infected with varicella-zoster virus. See
Herpes zoster.
McGraw-Hill Concise Dictionary of Modern Medicine. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
la·ten·cy phase
, latency period (lā'tĕn-sē fāz, pēr'ē-ŏd) 1. psychiatry According to psychoanalytic personality theory, the period of psychosexual development in children, extending from about age 5 to the beginning of adolescence around age 12, during which the apparent cessation of sexual preoccupation stems from a strong, aggressive blockade of libidinal and sexual impulses in an effort to avoid oedipal relationships; during this phase, boys and girls are inclined to choose friends and join groups of their own sex.
2. biowarfare Interval during which an organism lies dormant.
Medical Dictionary for the Health Professions and Nursing © Farlex 2012