Detection of air and surface contamination by SARS-CoV-2 in hospital rooms of infected patients.
Po Ying ChiaKristen Kelli ColemanYian Kim TanSean Wei Xiang OngMarcus GumSok Kiang LauXiao Fang LimAi Sim LimStephanie SutjiptoPei Hua LeeThan The SonBarnaby Edward YoungDonald K MiltonGregory C GrayStephan SchusterTimothy Mark Sebastian BarkhamPartha Pratim DeShawn VasooMonica ChanBrenda Sze Peng AngBoon Huan TanYee-Sin LeoOon Tek NgMichelle Su Yen WongKalisvar Marimuthunull nullPublished in: Nature communications (2020)
Understanding the particle size distribution in the air and patterns of environmental contamination of SARS-CoV-2 is essential for infection prevention policies. Here we screen surface and air samples from hospital rooms of COVID-19 patients for SARS-CoV-2 RNA. Environmental sampling is conducted in three airborne infection isolation rooms (AIIRs) in the ICU and 27 AIIRs in the general ward. 245 surface samples are collected. 56.7% of rooms have at least one environmental surface contaminated. High touch surface contamination is shown in ten (66.7%) out of 15 patients in the first week of illness, and three (20%) beyond the first week of illness (p = 0.01, χ2 test). Air sampling is performed in three of the 27 AIIRs in the general ward, and detects SARS-CoV-2 PCR-positive particles of sizes >4 µm and 1-4 µm in two rooms, despite these rooms having 12 air changes per hour. This warrants further study of the airborne transmission potential of SARS-CoV-2.
Keyphrases
- sars cov
- human health
- respiratory syndrome coronavirus
- risk assessment
- drinking water
- healthcare
- end stage renal disease
- health risk
- particulate matter
- chronic kidney disease
- heavy metals
- blood pressure
- randomized controlled trial
- emergency department
- intensive care unit
- newly diagnosed
- prognostic factors
- life cycle
- climate change
- clinical trial
- coronavirus disease
- drug induced
- extracorporeal membrane oxygenation
- placebo controlled
- sensitive detection
- double blind