COVID-19 virus stays for 3 days on plastic, stainless steel

The virus that causes COVID-19 remains for several hours to days on surfaces and in aerosols — detectable for up to three hours in aerosols, up to four hours on copper, up to 24 hours on cardboard and up to two to three days on plastic and stainless steel, a new study has claimed.

People may acquire the coronavirus through the air and aftertouching contaminated objects and this is the reason new cases are soaringglobally.

   

“This virus is quite transmissible through relatively casualcontact, making this pathogen very hard to contain,” said James Lloyd-Smith,co-author and professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at University ofCalifornia-Los Angeles.

“If you’re touching items that someone else has recentlyhandled, be aware they could be contaminated and wash your hands,” he said in apaper published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The study attempted to mimic the virus being deposited ontoeveryday surfaces in a household or hospital setting by an infected personthrough coughing or touching objects, for example.

The scientists then investigated how long the virus remainedinfectious on these surfaces.

In February, Lloyd-Smith and colleagues reported in thejournal eLife that screening travellers for COVID-19 is not very effective.

People infected with the virus — officially namedSARS-CoV-2 — may be spreading the virus without knowing they have it or beforesymptoms appear.

The biology and epidemiology of the virus make infectionextremely difficult to detect in its early stages because the majority of casesshow no symptoms for five days or longer after exposure.

“Many people won’t have developed symptoms yet,” Lloyd-Smithsaid. “Based on our earlier analysis of flu pandemic data, many people may notchoose to disclose if they do know”.

Avoid close contact with people who are sick,avoid touchingyour eyes, nose and mouth, stay home when you are sick, cover coughs or sneezeswith a tissue, and dispose of the tissue in the trash.Cleanand disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces using a householdcleaning spray or wipe, said researchers.

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