Alliance for Pandemic Preparedness

May 18, 2020

Understanding the Indoor Pre-Symptomatic Transmission Mechanism of COVID-19

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  • Arav et al. developed an evidence-based mathematical model to identify the mechanism of how pre-symptomatic individuals transmit SARS-CoV-2. The model explicitly quantifies the dynamics of contact and airborne transmission between individuals indoors.  
  • Modeling results show the main transmission mechanism is through close contact, mostly directly but also mediated by fomites, while the contribution of the airborne route is negligible. Based in the model, frequent hand washing and fomite cleaning, coupled with avoiding physical contact, results in a similar risk for infection as wearing gloves and a mask.  

Arav et al. (May 17, 2020). Understanding the Indoor Pre-Symptomatic Transmission Mechanism of COVID-19. Pre-print downloaded May 18 from https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.05.12.20099085