DURBAN - While staying at home is one of the advice given in the prevention of the spread of Covid-19.
Scientists and engineers say the air you breathe when indoors would be taken into consideration.
This they say will be key in avoiding the coronavirus, while you are indoor.
According to research, the vast majority of transmissions occurs
indoors
, most of it from the
inhalation of airborne particles
that contain the Coronavirus.
Here are examples of indoor places to avoid during the pandemic:
-
Poorly ventilated places: Recent research shows that in confined spaces there can be "airborne transmission" of the virus - with tiny virus particles lingering in the air. According to
Dr Hywel Davies
if you've got someone who's infected in a building, and you're bringing in plenty of outside air, you're diluting whatever infectious material they're giving off. You're reducing the risk of other people becoming infected.
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Low air space-to-person ratios: Low ceilings may leave little room for anything in the air to dissipate.
-
Buildings with no ready access to hand washing and disinfection.
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Check if there's a virus in the filters: In the US, researchers investigating the Oregon Health & Science University Hospital found that filters can trap the Coronavirus, but the virus could also somehow slip through.
-
Close contact environments like restaurants or in fitness classes: Some outbreak reports related to indoor crowded spaces have suggested the possibility of aerosol transmission, combined with droplet transmission.
In the report, published in
The BMJ
, say the current guidance for safe physical distancing may not be enough to stop the spread of Covid-19.
The researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Oxford say other factors, such as ventilation, crowd size, exposure time and whether face coverings are worn, need to be considered, as well.
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