Study shows covid present in air at Covid wards, longer time patient spends, longer the virus stays

Mangalore Today News Network

New Delhi, Jan 05, 2021:     In a study conducted by two Indian research institutes, researchers found that the virus responsible for causing Covid-19 infection was present in air samples from Covid-19 wards and not from non-Covid-19 wards.

 

The CSIR-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB), Hyderabad, and CSIR-Institute of Microbial Technology (IMTech), Chandigarh, have released their data on the air-borne nature of the novel coronavirus -- Covid-19 or SARS-CoV-2.

Scientists have worked with hospitals -- 3 in Hyderabad and 3 in Chandigarh -- to find if the virus particles can be found in air samples in the hospital wards.

For the study, the scientists used an air sampler to collect the virus particles and then looked for their presence using RT-PCR.

The study revealed that the virus was found in air samples from Covid-19 wards from hospitals but not from non-Covid--19 wards, suggesting that the demarcation of hospital zones has been an effective strategy.

The study also showed the chances of contracting SARS-CoV-2 present in the air is directly related to a number of Covid-19 positive cases in the room, their symptomatic status and the duration of exposure.

When Covid-19 patients spent long hours in a room, the virus was found in the air for more than 2 hours and even farther than 2 metres from their seating places.

However, for asymptomatic cases, they showed the virus does not spread farther from them when they are seated in a room without perceived airflow due to a fan or AC.

"All these findings show that coronavirus can stay in the air for some time. Detecting and isolating the positive cases early can help prevent the spread among other family members in a home setting too," said Dr Rakesh Mishra, Director, CCMB and also the corresponding author on this study.
"Till the vaccines are available, a social vaccine -- wearing a mask -- is the best prevention," said Dr Sanjeev Khosla, Director, IMTech.

Courtesy:India Today