Infectious coronavirus particles found in hospital air add to mounting evidence of airborne transmission
FirstpostThe significant concentrations of virus found in hospital aerosols highlight the need to follow precautions like improved ventilation, experts said. “It’s unambiguous evidence that there is infectious virus in aerosols.” A research team at the University of Florida succeeded in isolating live virus from aerosols collected at a distance of seven to 16 feet from patients hospitalized with COVID-19 — farther than the 6 feet recommended in social distancing guidelines. “It’s very hard to sample biological material from the air and have it be viable,” said Shelly Miller, an environmental engineer at the University of Colorado Boulder who studies air quality and airborne diseases. That may explain why the researchers found only 74 virus particles per litre of air, said John Lednicky, the team’s lead virologist at the University of Florida. “But that’s not a small thing.” Several experts noted that the distance at which the team found virus is much farther than the 6 feet recommended for physical distancing.