Mosialos: How can we reduce the number of coronavirus infections indoors?

The way we will be able to reduce the number of coronavirus infections indoors, said Elias Mosialos, Professor of Health Policy at the London School of Economics and representative of Greece in international organizations.

“We know that to prevent the spread of the virus, we must continue to pay attention to natural ventilation, personal hygiene, maintain a natural distance, wear a mask, and continue testing and contact detection,” he wrote. Mosial.

It then refers to a recent discovery made by “the famous Riken Japanese Research Institute and Kobe University”, which could have a significant impact on the fight against coronavirus. “The research team led by Professor Makoto Tsubokura used Fugaku, the world’s fastest supercomputer, to model the emission and flow of virus-like particles from infected individuals to various interiors,” he said.

Therefore, he said, based on the discovery, “humidity can have a significant effect on the spread of virus particles, indicating increased risks of transmitting the coronavirus to dry indoor conditions during the winter months.”

“According to the simulations, if the air humidity were less than 30%, this would have resulted in more than double the amount of particles in the atmosphere, compared to humidity levels of 60% or even more,” he concluded.

Mr. Mosialos’ position in detail:

How we can reduce the number of indoor infections.

It’s important to start focusing now on methods that can reduce the impact of indoor disease transmission with the onset of winter. We know that to prevent the spread of the virus, we must continue to pay attention to natural ventilation, personal hygiene, maintain a natural distance, wear a mask, and continue testing and contact detection.

But a recent discovery from the renowned Riken Japanese Research Institute and the University of Kobe could have significant implications for the fight against coronavirus. The research team, led by Professor Makoto Tsubokura, used Fugaku, the world’s fastest supercomputer, to model the emission and flow of virus-like particles from infected individuals into various indoor spaces.

They have shown that humidity can have a major effect on the spread of virus particles, indicating an increased risk of transmitting the coronavirus to dry indoor conditions during the winter months.

According to simulations, if the air humidity was less than 30%, the amount of particles in the atmosphere more than doubled, compared to humidity levels of 60% or more.

Furthermore, the simulations showed that:

• Opening windows on trains increases ventilation two to three times, reducing the concentration of germs in the environment.
• Face shields are not as effective as masks
  at a dinner party, we are more at risk than the people next to us compared to the people sitting opposite
• the number of singers in the choirs must be limited and distances must be respected

The Riken Institute finding suggests that the use of humidifiers can help reduce infections during periods when natural ventilation is not possible. Of course, it is better to keep the windows open as often as possible and if the weather permits. When the weather changes, and if the findings of this study are confirmed, humidifiers can help reduce the spread of infection.