Surface and Air Contamination With Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 From Hospitalized Coronavirus Disease 2019 Patients in Toronto, Canada, March–May 2020 Journal Articles uri icon

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abstract

  • Abstract Background We determined the burden of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in air and on surfaces in rooms of patients hospitalized with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and investigated patient characteristics associated with SARS-CoV-2 environmental contamination. Methods Nasopharyngeal swabs, surface, and air samples were collected from the rooms of 78 inpatients with COVID-19 at 6 acute care hospitals in Toronto from March to May 2020. Samples were tested for SARS-CoV-2 ribonucleic acid (RNA), cultured to determine potential infectivity, and whole viral genomes were sequenced. Association between patient factors and detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in surface samples were investigated. Results Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 RNA was detected from surfaces (125 of 474 samples; 42 of 78 patients) and air (3 of 146 samples; 3 of 45 patients); 17% (6 of 36) of surface samples from 3 patients yielded viable virus. Viral sequences from nasopharyngeal and surface samples clustered by patient. Multivariable analysis indicated hypoxia at admission, polymerase chain reaction-positive nasopharyngeal swab (cycle threshold of ≤30) on or after surface sampling date, higher Charlson comorbidity score, and shorter time from onset of illness to sampling date were significantly associated with detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in surface samples. Conclusions The infrequent recovery of infectious SARS-CoV-2 virus from the environment suggests that the risk to healthcare workers from air and near-patient surfaces in acute care hospital wards is likely limited.

authors

  • Kotwa, Jonathon D
  • Jamal, Alainna J
  • Mbareche, Hamza
  • Yip, Lily
  • Aftanas, Patryk
  • Barati, Shiva
  • Bell, Natalie G
  • Bryce, Elizabeth
  • Coomes, Eric
  • Crowl, Gloria
  • Duchaine, Caroline
  • Faheem, Amna
  • Farooqi, Lubna
  • Hiebert, Ryan
  • Katz, Kevin
  • Khan, Saman
  • Kozak, Robert
  • Li, Angel X
  • Mistry, Henna P
  • Mozafarihashjin, Mohammad
  • Nasir, Jalees A
  • Nirmalarajah, Kuganya
  • Panousis, Emily M
  • Paterson, Aimee
  • Plenderleith, Simon
  • Powis, Jeff
  • Prost, Karren
  • Schryer, Renée
  • Taylor, Maureen
  • Veillette, Marc
  • Wong, Titus
  • Zoe Zhong, Xi
  • McArthur, Andrew
  • McGeer, Allison J
  • Mubareka, Samira

publication date

  • March 2, 2022