Evidence of Airborne Transmission of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Virus
Ignatius Tak-sun Yu,Yuguo Li,Tze Wai Wong,Wilson W.S. Tam,Andy Chan,Joseph H.W. Lee,Dennis Y.C. Leung,Thomas C. Ho +7 more
TLDR
Airborne spread of the virus appears to explain this large community outbreak of SARS in Hong Kong, and future efforts at prevention and control must take into consideration the potential for airborne spread of this virus.Abstract:
background There is uncertainty about the mode of transmission of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) virus. We analyzed the temporal and spatial distributions of cases in a large community outbreak of SARS in Hong Kong and examined the correlation of these data with the three-dimensional spread of a virus-laden aerosol plume that was modeled using studies of airflow dynamics. methods We determined the distribution of the initial 187 cases of SARS in the Amoy Gardens housing complex in 2003 according to the date of onset and location of residence. We then studied the association between the location (building, floor, and direction the apartment unit faced) and the probability of infection using logistic regression. The spread of the airborne, virus-laden aerosols generated by the index patient was modeled with the use of airflow-dynamics studies, including studies performed with the use of computational fluid-dynamics and multizone modeling. results The curves of the epidemic suggested a common source of the outbreak. All but 5 patients lived in seven buildings (A to G), and the index patient and more than half the other patients with SARS (99 patients) lived in building E. Residents of the floors at the middle and upper levels in building E were at a significantly higher risk than residents on lower floors; this finding is consistent with a rising plume of contaminated warm air in the air shaft generated from a middle-level apartment unit. The risks for the different units matched the virus concentrations predicted with the use of multizone modeling. The distribution of risk in buildings B, C, and D corresponded well with the three-dimensional spread of virus-laden aerosols predicted with the use of computational fluiddynamics modeling. conclusions Airborne spread of the virus appears to explain this large community outbreak of SARS, and future efforts at prevention and control must take into consideration the potential for airborne spread of this virus.read more
Citations
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Airflow and droplet spreading around oxygen masks: A simulation model for infection control research
Margaret Ip,Julian W. Tang,David S.C. Hui,Alexandra L.N. Wong,Alexandra L.N. Wong,Matthew T. V. Chan,Gavin M. Joynt,Albert T.P. So,Stephen D. Hall,Paul K.S. Chan,Joseph J.Y. Sung +10 more
TL;DR: It was found that the simple, the nonrebreathing, and the Venturi-type oxygen masks produced exhaled smoke plumes over minimum distances, and health care workers should consider any area within at least 0.4 m of a patient using such oxygen masks to be a potential nosocomial hazard zone.
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COVID-19: urgent actions, critical reflections and future relevance of 'WaSH': lessons for the current and future pandemics.
Guy Howard,Jamie Bartram,Clarissa Brocklehurst,John M. Colford,Federico Costa,David Cunliffe,Robert Dreibelbis,Joseph Neil Spindel Eisenberg,Barbara Evans,Rosina Girones,Steve E. Hrudey,Juliet Willetts,Caradee Y. Wright +12 more
TL;DR: Urgent substantial action is required to remedy deficiencies in WaSH, particularly the provision of reliable, continuous piped water on-premises for all households and settings and to improve day-to-day lives and as preparedness for future pandemics.
Journal ArticleDOI
Influence of human breathing modes on airborne cross infection risk
TL;DR: In this paper, a 3D transient CFD model is used to predict personal exposure to airborne pathogens and infection risk in a displacement ventilated room, where two thermal manikins simulate two standing people, one of whom exhales a tracer gas N2O simulating airborne contaminants.
Journal ArticleDOI
Gastrointestinal endoscopy in the era of the acute pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019: Recommendations by Japan Gastroenterological Endoscopy Society (Issued on April 9th, 2020).
Atsushi Irisawa,Takahisa Furuta,Takayuki Matsumoto,Takashi Kawai,Tomoki Inaba,Atsushi Kanno,Akio Katanuma,Yoshiro Kawahara,Koji Matsuda,Kazuhiro Mizukami,Takao Otsuka,Ichiro Yasuda,Shinji Tanaka,Kazuma Fujimoto,Shinsaku Fukuda,Hiroyasu Iishi,Yoshinori Igarashi,Kazuo Inui,Toshiharu Ueki,Haruhiko Ogata,Mototsugu Kato,Akiko Shiotani,Kazuhide Higuchi,Naotaka Fujita,Kazunari Murakami,Hironori Yamamoto,Tohru Ito,Kazuichi Okazaki,Yuko Kitagawa,Tetsuya Mine,Hisao Tajiri,Haruhiro Inoue +31 more
TL;DR: All gastrointestinal endoscopic procedures have a high risk of aerosol contamination of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) to endoscopists, nurses, and healthcare assistants, and certain measures will prevent further spread of CO VID‐19.
Journal ArticleDOI
The Effects of Ventilation in Homes on Health
TL;DR: It seems likely that health risks may occur when ventilation rates are below 0.4 air changes per hour in existing homes, and studies are recommended in which exposures are much better characterized, by measuring the pollutants indicated by the WHO Guidelines for Indoor Air Quality and improving ventilation measurements.
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