Ventilation;

Beyond masks and hand hygiene, what factors impact transmission of Covid-19 in indoor gatherings?

FA Manian MD, MPH, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Aside from factors specific to the source individual (eg, viral load in exhaled air, “superspreader” features, etc…) and host characteristics (eg, older age, obesity, immunocompromised state), transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in indoor settings may be impacted by several factors, including social distancing, ventilation of rooms/ direction of airflow, room occupancy, exposure time and higher risk activities, such as eating, talking loud, heavy breathing during exercise, laughing, coughing and sneezing. 1-4

  1. Physical distance from infected individuals. Although a “safe” distance of 6 feet has often been cited, increasing evidence suggests that SARS-CoV-2 may be spread not only by larger droplets but also by airborne route (ie, beyond 6 feet or shortly after an infected person leaves the area). In fact, 8 of 10 studies on horizontal droplet distance have reported droplets traveling more than 6 feet (2 meters), some cases up to 26 feet (8 meters), and 1 study documented virus at 13 feet (4 meters). Transmission beyond 6 feet is not surprising since even as early as 1948 beta streptococci were found 9.5 feet from 10% of people who were infected!1
  2. Quality of ventilation and direction of airflow in the room. Poorly ventilated rooms would be expected to have more potentially infectious droplets in the air for longer periods of time, even after an infected person leaves the area.
  3. Room occupancy. The higher the occupancy the more likely to have exhaled contaminated air from 1 or more infected persons (symptomatic or asymptomatic) with exposure of susceptible hosts.
  4. Exposure time. Exposure to contaminated air in the room even for a relatively short period of time (ie, >5-15 minutes) is likely to increase the risk of transmission.
  5. Activity of infected individual. Many activities such as singing, speaking loudly, eating, laughing, breathing heavily during exercise, coughing and sneezing may increase risk of Covid-19 transmission in indoor settings.

Recall that over one-half of Covid-19 transmissions are due to asymptomatic individuals.5 In this setting and in the presence of factors discussed above, it’s easy to see how transmission of Covid-19 in indoor settings can occur readily, possibly explaining cases without apparent source.

Bonus Pearl: Did you know that the odds of Covid-19 transmission may be 18.7 times greater indoors compared to open-air environment and the odds of superspreading event in closed environments may be 32.6 times higher?4

Liked this post? Download the app on your smart phone and sign up below to catch future pearls right into your inbox, all for free!

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

References

  1. Bahl P, Doolan C, de Silva C, et al. Airborne or droplet precautions for health workers treating coronavirus disease 2019? J Infect Dis 2020. Published online April 16, 2020. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32301491/
  2. Jones NR, Quereshi Z, Temple RJ, et al. Two metres or one: what is the evidence for physical distancing in covid-19? BMJ 2020;370:m3223. https://www.bmj.com/content/370/bmj.m3223/rr-18
  3. Johansson MA, Quandelacy TM, Kada S, et al. SARS-CoV-2 transmission from people without COVID-19 symptoms. JAMA Network open. 2021;4():e2035057. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2774707?utm_source=For_The_Media&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=ftm_links&utm_term=010721
  4. Nishiura H, Oshitani H, Kobayashi T, et al. Closed environments facilitate secondary transmission of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). MedRxiv 2020. https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.02.28.20029272v2.full.pdf
  5. Leclerc QJ, Fuller NM, Knight LE,e tal. What settings have been linked to SARS-CoV-2 transmission clusters? Wellcome Open Research October, 2020. https://wellcomeopenresearch.org/articles/5-83    

Disclosures: The listed questions and answers are solely the responsibility of the author and do not necessarily represent the official views of Mercy Hospital-St. Louis or its affiliate healthcare centers. Although every effort has been made to provide accurate information, the author is far from being perfect. The reader is urged to verify the content of the material with other sources as deemed appropriate and exercise clinical judgment in the interpretation and application of the information provided herein. No responsibility for an adverse outcome or guarantees for a favorable clinical result is assumed by the author. Thank you!

Beyond masks and hand hygiene, what factors impact transmission of Covid-19 in indoor gatherings?

What’s the role of small droplets or aerosolized particles in the transmission of Covid-19?

FA Manian MD, MPH, , , , , , , , , , , 2 Comments

Although transmission of SARS-CoV-2 is often considered to occur through large respiratory droplets by coughing or sneezing, emerging data suggests that smaller respiratory particles (5 microns or less) generated by breathing, speaking or singing also account for a sizeable number of infections. Several lines of evidence make a cogent argument for aerosols serving as an important mode of transmission for SARS-CoV-2. 1-9

 First, there are ample accounts of SARS-CoV-2 spreading by being near an infected individual without symptoms.  Since by definition, those without symptoms do not cough or sneeze transmission must have occurred through other means, including breathing, talking or touching surfaces that might have become secondarily contaminated through aerosol.1,2,5  To make matters worse, the peak of contagion in infected individuals occurs on or before symptoms occur.1

Second, aerosolized SARS-CoV-2 has been shown to remain viable in the air for at least 3 hours and viral RNA (not necessarily viable virus) has been found in the air outside patient rooms and inside patient rooms in the absence of cough.2,9 One study found SARS-CoV-2 in outdoor air at a hospital entrance and in front of a department store.7

Third, contaminated air samples and long-range aerosol transport and transmission have been reported by several studies involving a related coronavirus, SARS-CoV-1, the agent of SARS.2

What’s the ramifications of aerosol transmission of Covid-19? The most obvious is the requirement for universal wearing of masks or face covers in public spaces even when 6 feet apart. This practice is particularly important indoors where the amount of ventilation, number of people, duration of stay in the facility, and airflow direction may impact the risk of exposure to SARS-CoV-2.1

The other potential ramification of aerosolized SARS-CoV-2 is that due to their smaller size, these virus-laden particles may bypass the upper respiratory tract and be inhaled directly into the lungs resulting in more severe disease.4  So it really makes sense to routinely wear a mask when out in public places.

Bonus Pearl: Did you know that 1 minute of loud speaking could generate over 1000 virus-containing aerosols in the air with a “super-emitter” generating over 100,000 virus particles in their droplets during the same time?1

Liked this post? Download the app on your smart phone and sign up below to catch future pearls right into your inbox, all for free!

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

 References

  1. Prather KA, Wang CC, Schooley RT. Reducing transmission of SARS-CoV-2. Science. May 27, 2020.
  2. Anderson EL, Turnham P, Griffin JR, et al. Consideration of the aerosol transmission for COVID-19 and public health. Risk Analysis 2020;40:902-7.
  3. Hamner L, Dubbel P, Capron I, et al. High SARS-CoV-2 attack rate following exposure at a choir practice-Skagit County, Washington, March 2020. MMWR 2020; 69: 606-10.
  4. Gralton J, Tovey E, McLaws ML, et al. The role of particle size in aerosolized pathogen transmission: a review. J Infect 2011;62:1-13.
  5. Asadi S, Bouvier N, Wexler AS et al. The coronavirus pandemic and aerosols: does COVID-19 transmit via expiratory particles. Aerosol Sci Technol 2020;54:635-38.
  6. Morawska L, Cao J. Airborne transmission of SARS-CoV-2: the world should face the reality. Env International 2020;139:105730.
  7. Liu Y, Ning Z, Chen Y, e al. Aerodynamic analysis of SARS-CoV-2 in two Wuhan hospitals. Nature 2020;582:557-60. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-020-2271-3.pdf
  8. Somsen GA, van Rijn C, Kooij S, et al. Small droplet aerosols in poorly ventilated spaces and SARS-CoV-2 transmission. Lancet Respir Med 2020; May 27. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7255254/pdf/main.pdf

9. Santarpia JL, Rivera DN, Herrera V, et al. Transmission potential of SARS-CoV-2 in viral shedding observed at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. 2020 (Preprint) https://www.ehs.ucsb.edu/files/docs/bs/Transmission_potential_of_SARS-CoV-2.pdf

Disclosures: The listed questions and answers are solely the responsibility of the author and do not necessarily represent the official views of Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Catalyst, Harvard University, its affiliate academic healthcare centers, or its contributors. Although every effort has been made to provide accurate information, the author is far from being perfect. The reader is urged to verify the content of the material with other sources as deemed appropriate and exercise clinical judgment in the interpretation and application of the information provided herein. No responsibility for an adverse outcome or guarantees for a favorable clinical result is assumed by the author. Thank you!

What’s the role of small droplets or aerosolized particles in the transmission of Covid-19?