Aerosol and surface contamination of SARS-CoV-2 observed in quarantine and isolation care

Sci Rep. 2020 Jul 29;10(1):12732. doi: 10.1038/s41598-020-69286-3.

Abstract

The novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) originated in Wuhan, China in late 2019, and its resulting coronavirus disease, COVID-19, was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization on March 11, 2020. The rapid global spread of COVID-19 represents perhaps the most significant public health emergency in a century. As the pandemic progressed, a continued paucity of evidence on routes of SARS-CoV-2 transmission has resulted in shifting infection prevention and control guidelines between classically-defined airborne and droplet precautions. During the initial isolation of 13 individuals with COVID-19 at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, we collected air and surface samples to examine viral shedding from isolated individuals. We detected viral contamination among all samples, supporting the use of airborne isolation precautions when caring for COVID-19 patients.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Aerosols / analysis*
  • Air Pollutants / analysis
  • Betacoronavirus / genetics*
  • Betacoronavirus / isolation & purification
  • Betacoronavirus / physiology
  • COVID-19
  • Coronavirus Infections / pathology*
  • Coronavirus Infections / transmission
  • Coronavirus Infections / virology
  • Humans
  • Infection Control / methods
  • Pandemics
  • Pneumonia, Viral / pathology*
  • Pneumonia, Viral / transmission
  • Pneumonia, Viral / virology
  • Public Health
  • RNA, Viral / isolation & purification
  • RNA, Viral / metabolism
  • Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
  • SARS-CoV-2
  • Time Factors

Substances

  • Aerosols
  • Air Pollutants
  • RNA, Viral