Fast Air-to-Liquid Sampler Detects Surges in SARS-CoV-2 Aerosol Levels in Hospital Rooms

Cristina del Álamo, Ángela Vázquez-Calvo, África Sanchiz, Gil Rodríguez-Caravaca, Rocío Martín, Bruno Hernáez, Pablo Méndez-Vigo-Carranza, Juan Sánchez García-Casarrubios, Antonio Alcamí () and José Luis Pérez-Díaz ()
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Cristina del Álamo: Escuela Politécnica, Universidad de Alcalá, 28801 Alcalá de Henares, Spain
Ángela Vázquez-Calvo: Centro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa (CBMSO), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), and Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (UAM), 28049 Madrid, Spain
África Sanchiz: Centro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa (CBMSO), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), and Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (UAM), 28049 Madrid, Spain
Gil Rodríguez-Caravaca: Preventive Medicine Service, Hospital Universitario Fundación Alcorcón, 28922 Alcorcón, Madrid, Spain
Rocío Martín: Centro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa (CBMSO), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), and Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (UAM), 28049 Madrid, Spain
Bruno Hernáez: Centro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa (CBMSO), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), and Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (UAM), 28049 Madrid, Spain
Pablo Méndez-Vigo-Carranza: COUNTERFOG S.L., 28341 Valdemoro, Madrid, Spain
Juan Sánchez García-Casarrubios: COUNTERFOG S.L., 28341 Valdemoro, Madrid, Spain
Antonio Alcamí: Centro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa (CBMSO), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), and Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (UAM), 28049 Madrid, Spain
José Luis Pérez-Díaz: Escuela Politécnica, Universidad de Alcalá, 28801 Alcalá de Henares, Spain

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 20, issue 1, 1-11

Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the dangers of airborne pathogen transmission. SARS-CoV-2 is known to be transmitted through aerosols; however, little is known about the dynamics of these aerosols in real environments, the conditions, and the minimum viral load required for infection. Efficiently measuring and capturing pathogens present in the air would help to understand the infection process. Air samplers usually take several hours to obtain an air sample. In this work a fast (1–2 min) method for capturing bioaerosols into a liquid medium has been tested in hospital rooms with COVID-19 patients. This fast sampling allows detecting transient levels of aerosols in the air. SARS-CoV-2 RNA is detected in aerosols from several hospital rooms at different levels. Interestingly, there are sudden boosts of the SARS-CoV-2 load in the air, suggesting that SARS-CoV-2 could be released abundantly at certain moments. These results show that the distribution of SARS-CoV-2-containing aerosols is not homogeneous in the hospital room. This technology is a fast and effective tool for capturing airborne matter in a very short time, which allows for fast decision-making any kind of hazard in the air is detected. It is also useful for a better understanding of aerosols dynamics.

Keywords: airborne; fast sampling; viruses; SARS-CoV-2; liquid sample; disease control; environmental health (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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