You are at higher risk to catch Coronavirus in closed spaces. Here’s how

The study revealed that any room that is not well ventilated has higher chances for the transmission of viruses like novel coronavirus. Read to know more on how to stay safe.

By: Satata Karmakar | | Updated: January 22, 2021 8:43 am

Coronavirus risk highest in indoor spaces. Here’s how to stay safe

Coronavirus vaccines are here but does that mean we are safe? should we stop wearing masks? can we now move outside freely without maintaining social distancing? No, we still need to follow the basic pandemic rules to keep ourselves safe from catching coronavirus. Yes, staying indoors can be a good option but that’s not enough. Do you know Covid-19 can spread easily inside a closed room? You read it right. Also Read - Coronavirus may cause sperm damage; Ways to boost male fertility

A new tool that was developed to calculate the risk of COVID-19 transmission in poorly-ventilated places has shown that when two people are in such spaces and neither is wearing a mask, prolonged talking is far more likely to spread the novel coronavirus than a short cough. Also Read - Vitamins and potential antivirals might be able to combat COVID-19

The research which was published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society A, showed that the Covid-19 virus spreads further than two meters in seconds in poorly-ventilated spaces. Also Read - Covavax: Serum Institute of India set to launch its second COVID-19 vaccine by June

HOW DOES CORONAVIRUS SPREAD INSIDE AN ENCLOSED ROOM

Explaining how the virus gets easily transmitted between two people inside an enclosed room, the researchers noted that — when speaking, we exhale smaller droplets, or aerosols, which spread easily around a room, and accumulate if ventilation is not adequate.

In contrast, coughing expels more large droplets, which are more likely to settle on surfaces after they are emitted, they said.

HOW WEARING MASKS CAN KEEP YOU SAFE INSIDE AN ENCLOSED ROOM

According to scientists, the vast majority of COVID-19 cases are spread through indoor transmission, whether via aerosols or droplets.

Stressing the need to keep wearing the masks, the scientists also said that it only takes a matter of seconds for aerosols to spread over two meters when masks are not worn, implying that physical distancing in the absence of ventilation is not sufficient to provide safety for long exposure times.

However, when masks of any kind are worn, they slow the breath’s momentum and filter a portion of the exhaled droplets, in turn reducing the amount of virus in aerosols that can spread through space, they said.

THIS IS HOW SARS-CoV-2 SPREADS INSIDE VARIOUS ENCLOSED ROOMS

The team used mathematical models that show how the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which causes COVID-19, spreads in different indoor spaces, depending on the size, occupancy, ventilation, and whether masks are being worked.

Based on the results of their models, the researchers developed Airborne.cam, a free, open-source tool that helps users understand how ventilation and other measures affect the risk of indoor transmission, and how that risk changes over time.

WHAT IS THE RISK OF CORONAVIRUS TRANSMISSION IN AN INDOOR SETTING?

The team used characteristics of the virus, such as its decay rate and viral load in infected individuals, to estimate the risk of transmission in an indoor setting due to normal speech or a short cough by an infectious person.

They showed that, for instance, the infection risk after speaking for one hour in a typical lecture room was high, but the risk could be decreased significantly with adequate ventilation.

Airborne.cam can be used by those managing public spaces, such as shops, workplaces, and classrooms, in order to determine whether ventilation is adequate, the researchers said.

“The tool can help people use fluid mechanics to make better choices, and adapt their day-to-day activities and surroundings in order to suppress risk, both for themselves and for others,” said study co-author Savvas Gkantonas, who led the development of the app with Pedro de Oliveira from Cambridge’s Department of Engineering.

HIGH RATE OF EVOLUTION IN THE CORONAVIRUS’ PROTEIN SPIKE

The researchers quantified the vital role of ventilation in the spread of COVID-19, finding that in poorly-ventilated spaces, the virus spreads further than two meters in seconds, and is far more likely to spread through prolonged talking than through coughing.

“We’re looking at all sides of aerosol and droplet transmission to understand, for example, the fluid mechanics involved in coughing and speaking,” said study senior author Professor Epaminondas Mastorakos, also from the Department of Engineering.

“The role of turbulence and how it affects which droplets settle by gravity and which remain afloat in the air is, in particular, not well understood.

“We hope these and other new results will be implemented as safety factors in the app as we continue to investigate,” Mastorakos added.

Published : January 21, 2021 3:18 pm | Updated:January 22, 2021 8:43 am

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