The World Health Organisation (WHO) has acknowledged the possibility that COVID-19 might spread in the air under certain conditions. The admission comes on the back of more than 200 scientists writing an open letter to the organisation.
The WHO has consistently held that the coronavirus infection spreads through droplets when a person with COVID-19 coughs, sneezes or speaks, or for certain risky medical procedures, such as when patients are first put on breathing machines.
239 scientists from 32 countries had written an open letter to the WHO, outlining the evidence showing smaller particles can infect people. Whether carried by large droplets that zoom through the air after a sneeze, or by much smaller exhaled droplets that may glide the length of a room, the coronavirus is borne through air and can infect people when inhaled, the scientists said.
In a change to its previous thinking, WHO noted on Thursday that studies evaluating COVID-19 outbreaks in restaurants, choir practices and fitness classes suggested the virus might have been spread in the air.
ALSO READ
- 335 fresh Covid cases in India
- From polio to Covid-19: What we can learn from polio eradication for pandemic response
- Sudha Murty praises Vivek Agnihotri's 'The Vaccine War'
- China won't require COVID-19 testing for incoming travellers starting Wednesday
- North Korea to allow its citizens abroad to return home, a sign of further easing of pandemic curbs
Airborne spread "particularly in specific indoor locations, such as crowded and inadequately ventilated spaces over a prolonged period of time with infected persons cannot be ruled out", WHO said.
What are the implications of this? This could mean the virus lingers indoors. "If airborne transmission is a significant factor in the pandemic, especially in crowded spaces with poor ventilation, the consequences for containment will be significant. Masks may be needed indoors, even in socially-distant settings. Healthcare workers may need N95 masks that filter out even the smallest respiratory droplets as they care for coronavirus patients," according to the New York Times.
WHO's stance also recognised the importance of people spreading COVID-19 without symptoms, a phenomenon the organisation has long downplayed. WHO has repeatedly said "such transmission is rare" despite a growing consensus among scientists globally that asymptomatic spread likely accounts for a significant amount of transmission.
The agency said that most spread is via droplets from infected people who cough or sneeze, but added that people without symptoms are also capable of transmitting the disease. The extent of truly asymptomatic infection in the community remains unknown, WHO said.
-Inputs from agencies
