World News – CA – CDC revises coronavirus guidelines to recognize it spreads by air transmission

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention revised its guidelines on coronaviruses on Monday, recognizing that it can sometimes spread through airborne particles that can « linger in the air for minutes to hours « and among people who are more than 6 feet apart

The CDC cited published reports that demonstrated « limited and rare circumstances in which people with COVID-19 infected others who were more than six feet or soon after the COVID-19 positive person has left an area »

« In these cases, transmission occurred in poorly ventilated and closed spaces which often involved activities that resulted in heavier breathing, such as singing or exercising, » the CDC said in a statement. « These environments and activities can contribute to the accumulation of particles carrying viruses »

The agency added that it is « much more common » for the virus to be spread through larger respiratory droplets that are produced when someone coughs, sneezes, chants, speaks or breathes People become infected with such droplets primarily when in close contact with an infected person, the CDC saidÂ

« The CDC’s recommendations remain the same based on existing science and after a thorough technical review of the guidance, » the agency said « People can protect themselves from the virus that causes COVID-19 by staying away from at least six feet from others, wearing a mask that covers their nose and mouth, washing their hands frequently, cleaning affected surfaces often, and staying home when they are sick »

The updated guidelines come after the agency mistakenly released a review last month that said the virus could be spread through aerosols, small droplets that can linger in the air The guidelines were quickly removed from the CDC’s website as it was only a « draft of the proposed changes, » the agency said

To what extent the coronavirus can spread through airborne particles has been a controversial debate among scientists for months Some epidemiologists have accused the World Health Organization as well as federal regulatory agencies of many countries to accept that the virus can be spread by air This is a debate that could have implications for the importance of air filtration in reopening businesses and schools

Dr Bill Schaffner, an infectious disease specialist at Vanderbilt University, said the new guidelines are largely in line with what he says science says about the coronavirus spreading through the air He said in a telephone interview after reviewing the new guidelines that aerial transmission was somewhat of a « side street » for propagation.Â

“Some cars drive on the side street,” he says “But transmission highways are close, usually in enclosed spaces and for periods of longer than 15 minutes, with people standing within three to six each other’s feet »

Schaffner added that the new guidelines don’t necessarily change the way he thinks about reducing the risk of infection for most people Wearing a mask, social distancing and avoiding large indoor gatherings remain the most important steps people can take, he said.Â

But businesses, where many people walk in and out every day, might want to re-examine their ventilation systems, he said.

« Have your air handling system examined and see how efficient it is, if you are getting enough air changes per hour, and where the stuffy corners of the building are, » he said. he said « See if there is anything you can do to improve the air handling »

Saskia Popescu, epidemiologist and biodefense expert at the University of Arizona, said the new CDC guidelines are « good enough. She added that » the term airborne means so much to so many people, « and the advice do a good job of pointing out that the virus appears to be spread only by air in certain environments, such as crowded and poorly ventilated indoor spaces

“We know these events are happening, but they are not the main driver,” she said in a phone interview. “It’s a good reminder that there are environments that present a higher risk of airborne transmission and we just need to communicate it « 

She added that, hopefully, people take away from this advice that « this hard and fast six-foot ruler is not an invisible force field that respiratory droplets, secretions and aerosols come from. hit and fall dead“Instead,” she says, “people need to understand that risk factors change in different environments

« There are many factors that go into the transmission and you can’t choose which ones, » she says « That means, ‘hey, some environments have a higher risk, so you have to take all these security measures’, that risk reduction is additive, and not just to be so focused »

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Airborne transmission, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention