Transmission of COVID-19 Can Be Through Touch with Goods
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COVID-19 is spreading very fast. The route is not only through droplet or saliva from coughing or sneezing, but also from surfaces that the patient has touched. This is why even if you are diligent in wearing a mask, transmission of COVID-19 can still occur if you touch contaminated items and then touch your eyes, nose or mouth.
Viruses, including SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19, are unable to reproduce without a living host. However, viruses can usually stay on surfaces for several hours before eventually dying. It is at this time that the transmission of COVID-19 can occur.
How can COVID-19 be transmitted?
Transmission of COVID-19 occurs between people through droplet, or splashes of body fluids containing SARS-CoV-2 particles. In contrast to airborne transmission (airborne), SARS-CoV-2 requires an intermediary to be able to switch hosts.
If a COVID-19 patient does not cover his mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing, he will expel droplet contains viruses. Droplet can be inhaled by a healthy person or on the patient’s hands and objects around them.
Even if you don’t inhale droplet from patients, you may catch the virus when you shake hands or touch an object that has the virus. You can catch the virus if you touch your eyes, nose or mouth without washing your hands first.
One small study has also suggested that SARS-CoV-2 may be present in feces and can contaminate the toilet or sink. However, the transmission of COVID-19 through faecal contamination still needs to be studied further.
Can SARS-CoV-2 survive in the air?
Although it does not spread through the air, SARS-CoV-2 remains in the air for three hours in aerosol form. Aerosols are very fine particles that can float in the air like fog.
Droplet can only last for a few seconds in the air because of its size and heavier. On the other hand, aerosols are so fine that the particles including the viruses in them can last much longer than that droplet.
Apart from being durable, viruses in aerosols can also move further in the air. If usually transmission of COVID-19 is limited by a short distance, transmission through aerosols has the potential to cover a much wider area than droplet.
However, you don’t have to panic. Change droplet becoming an aerosol is more common in hospital settings, usually when medical personnel treat patients who have respiratory failure. This procedure is called intubation.
When the doctor intubates, the patient’s breath fluids can change form into an aerosol. Aerosols can stay in the air for the next few hours. This is why medical personnel must protect themselves by wearing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).
The possibility of transmission of COVID-19 through aerosol particles has so far been limited to certain conditions and is not the main method of transmission. However, this does not mean that it can be underestimated.
SARS-CoV-2 durability on the surface of goods
SARS-CoV-2 can stay on the surface of goods for a certain period of time. Depending on the material to which it is attached, the resistance of this virus can range from several hours to days.
The following is an illustration of the resistance of SARS-CoV-2 on the surface of several types of materials:
- Aluminum (food and beverage cans, foil): 2-8 hours
- Glass and glass (glass, window glass, mirror): up to 5 days
- Metal (cutlery, doorknobs, jewelry): 5 days
- Cloth (clothes, pillowcases, towels): several hours to 1 day
- Cartons (package packaging): 1 day
- Wood (tables, chairs, wooden decorations): 4 days
- Ceramics (plates, glasses, pottery): 5 days
- Paper (books, magazines, newspapers): up to 5 days
- Plastic (remote, bottle, stool, back of the phone): 2-3 days
- Stainless steel(cooking utensils, refrigerator, sink): 2-3 days
- Copper (change, cooking utensil, teapot): 4 hours
Before scientists knew the resistance of SARS-CoV-2 on the surface of goods, it was feared that this virus could spread via imported goods. Many also worry that COVID-19 transmission can occur through parcels.
However, again, you don’t need to panic. The virus may stick to imported goods from officers who cough or sneeze, but the virus will not survive the length of the delivery period. The virus is likely to die before the goods arrive in the destination country.
The same applies to parcels. SARS-CoV-2 can stick to the package if a positive messenger coughed or sneezed near the package, but you can prevent transmission of the virus by cleaning the package and washing your hands.
How to prevent transmission of COVID-19 from contaminated goods
All of these ingredients are in the items you use every day. The best way to prevent transmission of COVID-19 through contaminated goods is to clean these items regularly.
Prepare disinfectant, spray, clean cloth, soap, and gloves. Use gloves before every disinfectant solution to protect your skin from chemical exposure.
First, dampen a clean cloth with a little soap and water. Use the cloth to clean the surface of the item from dirt and dust. This stage is important because dirt and dust can reduce the disinfectant function.
After the surface of the item is clean of dirt, spray the disinfectant evenly. Leave it for a few hours for the chemicals in the disinfectant to work.
While using a disinfectant, make sure you don’t spray disinfectant on your body. The reason is, the chemicals contained in disinfectants can cause irritation to the skin, eyes and other mucous membranes.
The main transmission of COVID-19 occurs through droplet from positive patients. However, not infrequently, transmission occurs through contact with contaminated items. Apart from washing your hands and wearing a mask, cleaning things around you is just as important.
Hello Health Group does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.
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