Research Shows Flu Is Spread by Aerosols
Avoiding the flu may be more difficult than previously believed as researchers have found that it is transmitted via aerosols, not just droplets resulting from sneezing or coughing, as was once thought.
Avoiding the flu may be more difficult than previously believed as researchers have found that it is transmitted via aerosols, not just droplets resulting from sneezing or coughing, as was once thought.
Researchers from the University of Maryland, San Jose State University, Missouri Western State University, and University of California, Berkeley, found that large quantities of infectious virus were present in the exhaled breath of people diagnosed with the flu.
The study “Infectious Virus in Exhaled Breath of Symptomatic Seasonal Influenza Cases From a College Community,” published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, reported finding influenza virus in exhaled breath from 142 confirmed cases of people with influenza during natural breathing, prompted speech, spontaneous coughing, and sneezing, and assessed the infectivity of naturally occurring influenza aerosols. Analysis of the infectious virus recovered from these samples demonstrated that a significant number of patients routinely shed infectious virus into aerosols small enough to present a risk for airborne transmission.
Results suggest that avoiding public places may reduce the risk of flu transmission, and the information gained may support the development of more effective public health interventions and strategies to control and reduce the impact of influenza epidemics and pandemics.
From Dimensions of Dental Hygiene. March 2018;16(3):10.
