key: cord-0845019-bfq7vvef
authors: Hu, Xiaowen; Xing, Yuhan; Ni, Wei; Zhang, Feng; Lu, Sheyu; Wang, Zhaoguo; Gao, Ruqin; Jiang, Fachun
title: Environmental contamination by SARS-CoV-2 of an imported case during incubation period
date: 2020-06-30
journal: Sci Total Environ
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.140620
sha: ca4d9262ead083cbd8435ad313af7f83be59f18a
doc_id: 845019
cord_uid: bfq7vvef

Abstract We collected environmental surface samples prior to and after disinfection of a quarantine room to evaluate the stability of SARS-CoV-2 during the incubation period of an imported case traveling to Qingdao, China. Overall, 11 of 23 (47.8%) of the first batch of environmental surface samples (within 4 h after case confirmation) were tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. Whereas only 2 of 23 (8.7%) of the second batch of environmental samples (after first disinfection) were tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. The majority of samples from the bedroom (70%) were positive for SARS-CoV-2, followed by 50% of samples from the bathroom and that of 33% from the corridor. The inner walls of toilet bowl and sewer inlet were the most contaminated sites with the highest viral loads. SARS-CoV-2 was widely distributed on object surfaces in a quarantine room of a later diagnosed COVID-19 case during the incubation period. Proper disinfection is crucial to minimize community transmission of this highly contagious virus.

The pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 due to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has been sweeping across over 200 countries and regions, causing nearly 480 thousand deaths worldwide (WHO, 2020) . At present, several surface sampling studies have indicated positive results for SARS-CoV-2 detection, however, they only focused on intensive care units and general wards of hospitals where confirmed patients stayed for several days (Faridi et al., 2020; Guo et al., 2020; Ong et al., 2020) . Thus, there has been limited data regarding the contamination of dwelling environment during the incubation period.

In China, where the outbreak was first reported (WHO, 2020), thanks to series of aggressive measures such as strict traffic control, universal masking and highly Living room 0/4 (0) >40 >40

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