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Field study of the indoor environments for preventing the spread of the SARS‐CoV‐2 in Seoul
Author(s) -
Seo Minjeong,
Lim Hakmyeong,
Park Myungkyu,
Ha Kwangtae,
Kwon Seungmi,
Shin Jinho,
Lee Jaein,
Hwang Youngok,
Oh Younghee,
Shin Yongseung
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
indoor air
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.387
H-Index - 99
eISSN - 1600-0668
pISSN - 0905-6947
DOI - 10.1111/ina.12959
Subject(s) - covid-19 , indoor air , outbreak , environmental science , air pollutants , environmental health , veterinary medicine , medicine , virology , environmental engineering , air pollution , biology , infectious disease (medical specialty) , ecology , pathology , disease
Despite the prolonged global spread of COVID‐19, few studies have investigated the environmental influence on the spread of SARS‐CoV‐2 RNA with a metropolitan scale, particularly the detection of SARS‐CoV‐2 after disinfection at multi‐use facilities. Between February 2020 and January 2021, 1,769 indoor air samples and object surfaces were tested at 231 multi‐use facilities where confirmed cases were known to have occurred in Seoul, to determine whether SARS‐CoV‐2 RNA could be detected even after disinfection. Samples were collected by air scanner and swab pipette and detected by real‐time RT‐PCR. As a result, 10 (0.56%) positive samples were detected despite disinfection. The common environmental features of all 10 were surfaces that contained moisture and windowless buildings. With the aim of preventing the spread of COVID‐19, from January to February 2021, we next conducted 643 preemptive tests before the outbreak of infections at 22 multi‐use facilities where cluster infections were frequent. From these preemptive inspections, we obtained five (0.78%) positive results from two facilities, which enabled us to disinfect the buildings and give all the users a COVID‐19 test. Based on the study purpose of finding and investigating cases of positive detection even after disinfection in the field through long‐term environmental detection in a large city, our preemptive investigation results helped to prevent the spread of infectious diseases by confirming the potential existence of an asymptomatic patient.