期刊
JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
卷 416, 期 -, 页码 -出版社
ELSEVIER
DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2021.126137
关键词
Fomite exposure; Surrogate tracer; Surface touch network; Infection control; Surface hygiene
资金
- HK RGC project [17203420]
- HKU ZIRI seed funding scheme [04004]
Experiments demonstrate that touching public objects and sparse hand-to-hand contact are important pathways for contamination spread, and the size of the social group is correlated with transmission. The degree of contamination on public and hidden public surfaces can indicate fomite exposure risk.
Fomites are known to spread infectious diseases, but their role in determining transmission risk remains unclear. The association of surface touch networks (STNs), proposed to explain this risk, with real-life surface contamination has not yet been demonstrated. To construct STNs, we collected surface touch data from 23 to 26 scholars through 2 independent experiments conducted in office spaces for 13 h each. In parallel, a tracer bacterium (Lactobacillus bulgaricus) was spread by a designated carrier in each experiment during normal activities; the subsequent extent of surface contamination was assessed using qPCR. The touch data were also analyzed using an agent-based model that predicted the observed contamination. Touching public (door handles) and hidden public (desks, chair seatbacks) surfaces that connected occupants, sparse hand-to-hand contact, and active carriers contributed significantly to contamination spread, which was also correlated with the size of the social group containing carriers. The natural and unsupervised experiments reflected realistic exposure levels of mouths (1-10 ppm of total contamination spread by one root carrier), nostrils (-1 ppm), and eyes (-0.1 ppm). We conclude that the contamination degree of known and hidden public surfaces can indicate fomite exposure risk. The social group effect could trigger superspreading events through fomite transmission.
作者
我是这篇论文的作者
点击您的名字以认领此论文并将其添加到您的个人资料中。
推荐
暂无数据