Airborne transmission of the Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 in an auditorium.

ABSTRACT: The Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 has inflicted heavy burdens on healthcare systems globally, although direct evidence on the quantity of exhaled viral shedding from Delta cases is lacking. The literature remains inconclusive on whether existing public health guidance, based on earlier evidence of COVID-19, should respond differently to more infectious viral strains. This paper describes a study on an outbreak of the Delta variant of COVID-19 in an auditorium, where one person contracted the virus from three asymptomatic index cases sitting in a different row. Field inspections were conducted on the configuration of seating, building and ventilation systems. Numerical simulation was conducted to retrospectively assess the exhaled viral emission, decay, airborne dispersion, with a modified We

SUBMITTER: Huang J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9128309 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature