Coronavirus spreads in homes through hands and surfaces, according to a study from the United Kingdom.

A study published this Thursday empirically confirms for the first time that the spread of the coronavirus in homes has been linked to its presence on hands and surfaces, which in the future pandemicsSubstantiates the need to comply with the rules of hygiene.

Research conducted by scientists at Imperial College London in collaboration with the Health Security Agency Great Britain (UKHSA, in English) and the University of Oxford, shows that the risk of infection between close friends increases if the virus is present “on people’s hands and on frequently touched surfaces at home”.

A study led by Ajit Lalvani, published in Lancet Microbedid not check availability virus in the air and therefore does not rule out that it was also transmitted by this route.

The researchers surveyed 414 contacts who lived in the same households as the 279 diagnosed cases between August 1, 2020 and March 31, 2021, at the height of the outbreak. pandemic and when several people were vaccinated. The age range was from 6 to 79, and 52% were women, they note.

All “contacts” regularly underwent PCR tests for infection SARS-CoV-2 swabs were also taken from the hands of both the original cases and their relatives, as well as from commonly used surfaces such as refrigerator doorknobs and kettles or kitchen faucets.

Viruses on hands and surfaces

The researchers found that “if the virus was found on the hands of the primary cases, contacts in their households were 1.7 times more likely to be infected than those in households where the primary cases did not have the virus on their hands.”

They note that if the virus was present on surfaces, contacts were 3.8 times more likely to have the virus on their hands and 1.7 times more likely to test positive by PCR.

Lalvani states that “So far, the presence of the virus on people’s hands or on household surfaces has not been shown to predict transmission to contact persons.”

In summary, the findings support the adoption of certain measures at home when someone has an infection, such as “frequent handwashing, regular surface disinfection and physical distancing, and the use of masks to slow the spread of infection.” COVID-19says in the study.

The authors caution that their study is purely observational, so it does not prove “causation,” and they also acknowledge that non-white and older ethnic groups were overrepresented. On the other hand, due to the dates it was developed, the study is limited to pre-alpha and alpha variants, they note.

(As reported by EFE)