Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 environmental contamination in hospital rooms is uncommon using viral culture techniques
Bobby Warren, Alicia Nelson, Aaron Barrett, Bechtler Addison, Amanda Graves, Raquel A. Binder, Gregory C. Gray, Sarah S. Lewis, Becky Smith, David J. Weber, Emily Sickbert-Bennett, Deverick J. Anderson
Abstract
We assessed environmental contamination of inpatient rooms housing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients in a dedicated COVID-19 unit. Contamination with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 was found on 5.5% (19/347) of surfaces via reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction and 0.3% (1/347) of surfaces via cell culture. Environmental contamination is uncommon in hospitals rooms; RNA presence is not a specific indicator of infectious virus.
Topics & Concepts
ContaminationMedicineCoronavirusCoronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)Respiratory systemViral cultureVirusVirologyPolymerase chain reaction2019-20 coronavirus outbreakReverse transcription polymerase chain reactionInfectious disease (medical specialty)OutbreakInternal medicineDiseaseBiologyEcologyBiochemistryMessenger RNAGeneInfection Control and VentilationSARS-CoV-2 detection and testingDental Research and COVID-19