Portable air cleaners and residential exposure to SARS-CoV-2 aerosols: a real-world study.

Details

• Personal Author:
  Alimokhtari S ; Black KG ; Calderón L ; De Resende A ; Kipen HM ; Laumbach RJ ; Legard A ; Lu FT ; Mainelis G ; Myers NT ; Ohman-Strickland P
• Description:
  Individuals with COVID-19 who do not require hospitalization are instructed to self-isolate in their residences. Due to high secondary infection rates in household members, there is a need to understand airborne transmission of SARS-CoV-2 within residences. We report the first naturalistic intervention study suggesting a reduction of such transmission risk using portable air cleaners (PACs) with HEPA filters. Seventeen individuals with newly diagnosed COVID-19 infection completed this single-blind, crossover, randomized study. Total and size-fractionated aerosol samples were collected simultaneously in the self-isolation room with the PAC (primary) and another room (secondary) for two consecutive 24-h periods, one period with HEPA filtration and the other with the filter removed (sham). Seven out of sixteen (44%) air samples in primary rooms were positive for SARS-CoV-2 RNA during the sham period. With the PAC operated at its lowest setting (clean air delivery rate [CADR] = 263 cfm) to minimize noise, positive aerosol samples decreased to four out of sixteen residences (25%; p = 0.229). A slight decrease in positive aerosol samples was also observed in the secondary room. As the world confronts both new variants and limited vaccination rates, our study supports this practical intervention to reduce the presence of viral aerosols in a real-world setting. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Aerosols Communicable Diseases Environmental Monitoring Noise Occupational Health Safety Viral Diseases
• Keywords:
  Aerosols; COVID-19; Sampling; HEPA Filters; High-efficiency Particulate Air Filters; Air Samples; Noise; Statistical Analysis; Vaccines; Intervention; Viral Diseases; Author Keywords: Air Change Rate; Airborne Transmission; COVID-19 Pandemic; COVID-19 Symptoms; PTFE Filter Virus Sampling; SARS-CoV-2 Aerosols
• ISSN:
  0905-6947
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  New Jersey ; New York ; OSHA Region 2
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  32
• Issue:
  4
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20065109
• Citation:
  Indoor Air 2022 Apr; 32(4):e13029
• Contact Point Address:
  Gediminas Mainelis, Departmentof Environmental Sciences, Rutgers University, 14 College Farm Road, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, USA
• Email:
  mainelis@rutgers.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2022
• Performing Organization:
  Mount Sinai School of Medicine
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Indoor Air
• End Date:
  20270630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:9219286ef235b2d233ead7bbab4dec74d027a64a49d1febbe84d21a2f73d0d58883f375aac138438712a8fbe04e65a70fa9a4d7937e1c135194f5d18e4929dd0
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/249337/cdc_249337_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 689.65 KB ]