A hospital staff sanitizes the premise in the new covide hospital in Sector 39, on 7 August 2020 in Noida, India.
Sunil Ghosh | Hindustan Times via Getty Images
A new study testing multiple surfaces of an oncology unit in New Jersey found no traces of the coronavirus, suggesting that strict cleaning and disinfection protocols helped limit the spread of the virus at the time of the outbreak. of the state.
Researchers at the Rutgers Cancer Institute in New Jersey are collecting 128 samples of surfaces that were considered the highest risk for the virus – including seizures, sinks, stools, etc. – in a radiation oncology department at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, according to the published study in JAMA Oncology Thursday.
The samples were collected several days before scheduled cleaning of the facility during the height of the New Jersey outbreak. The coronavirus was not found on any of the samples, the study found.
“We intentionally told no one in the department that we did this study because we did not want them to be too careful and do things that they would not do routinely because we did the tests,” said Dr. . Bruce Haffty, a professor and chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology at the Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey and a senior author of the study.
“We masked patients, masked ourselves. We did routine hand washing and cleaning and distancing,” he said.
The patients at the oncology unit were housed in a hospital treating Covid-19 patients, raising fears that they could become infected with the coronavirus and become seriously ill or die because they were immunocompromised, Haffty said. . Health care professionals throughout the pandemic have expressed concern that the coronavirus has prevented people from visiting hospitals and clinics, even for necessary procedures and controls.
“We all had to change our lifestyle and change what we do on a daily basis, but the things you absolutely must do … they do not have to be unnecessarily postponed because you are afraid of the environment,” he said. .
The coronavirus is mainly thought to spread through person-to-person contact when someone injectes respiratory droplets while wheezing, coughing or talking, according to the World Health Organization. However, it is also believed that the infection can be transmitted through fomites, such as by touching touching objects or surfaces and then your face, nose or mouth.
Researchers found that their conclusions were limited because the other transmission modes were not studied, and not every surface in the unit was swabbed. The study’s authors suggest additional aerial and surface studies in other environments to better understand the role play in coronavirus spread.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests that people frequently touch disinfected surfaces at home, including tables, doorknobs, light switches, handles, desks, toilets, faucets, sinks and electronics.
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