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Viable Influenza A Virus in Airborne Particles from Human Coughs
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2015
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Details:
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Alternative Title:figshare Academic Research System
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Journal Article:Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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Corporate Authors:Allergy and Clinical Immunology Branch, Health Effects Laboratory Division, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health ; Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, West Virginia University, School of Medicine, Robert C. Byrd Health Sciences Center, West Virginia University ; Field Studies Branch, Division of Respiratory Disease Studies, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health ; Health Effects Laboratory Division, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health ; Health Effects Laboratory Division, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ; ... More +
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Description:Patients with influenza release aerosol particles containing the virus into their environment. However, the importance of airborne transmission in the spread of influenza is unclear, in part because of a lack of information about the infectivity of the airborne virus. The purpose of this study was to determine the amount of viable influenza A virus that was expelled by patients in aerosol particles while coughing. Sixty-four symptomatic adult volunteer outpatients were asked to cough 6 times into a cough aerosol collection system. Seventeen of these participants tested positive for influenza A virus by viral plaque assay (VPA) with confirmation by viral replication assay (VRA). Viable influenza A virus was detected in the cough aerosol particles from 7 of these 17 test subjects (41%). Viable influenza A virus was found in the smallest particle size fraction (0.3 μm to 8 μm), with a mean of 142 plaque-forming units (SD 215) expelled during the 6 coughs in particles of this size. These results suggest that a significant proportion of patients with influenza A release small airborne particles containing viable virus into the environment. Although the amounts of influenza A detected in cough aerosol particles during our experiments were relatively low, larger quantities could be expelled by influenza patients during a pandemic when illnesses would be more severe. Our findings support the idea that airborne infectious particles could play an important role in the spread of influenza.
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Content Notes:Stacks:37848
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Modified:01/19/2016
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Date Issued:01/01/2015
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