It Is Time to Address Airborne Transmission of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)

作者：Lídia Morawska, Donald K. Milton · 发表于：Clinical Infectious Diseases · 年份：2020 · DOI：10.1093/cid/ciaa939 · 被引用次数：1277 · 研究领域：Infection Control and Ventilation、COVID-19 impact on air quality、Noise Effects and Management

We appeal to the medical community and to the relevant national and international bodies to recognize the potential for airborne spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). There is significant potential for inhalation exposure to viruses in microscopic respiratory droplets (microdroplets) at short to medium distances (up to several meters, or room scale), and we are advocating for the use of preventive measures to mitigate this route of airborne transmission. Studies by the signatories and other scientists have demonstrated beyond any reasonable doubt that viruses are released during exhalation, talking, and coughing in microdroplets small enough to remain aloft in air and pose a risk of exposure at distances beyond 1–2 m from an infected individual ([1–4]). For example, at typical indoor air velocities [5], a 5-μm droplet will travel tens of meters, much greater than the scale of a typical room, while settling from a height of 1.5 m to the floor. Several retrospective studies conducted after the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 1 (SARS-CoV-1) epidemic demonstrated that airborne transmission was the most likely mechanism explaining the spatial pattern of infections [6]. Retrospective analysis has shown the same for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) [7–10]. In particular, a study in their review of records from a Chinese restaurant observed no evidence of direct or indirect contact between the 3 parties [10]. In their review of video...