Scientists Ask WHO to Revise Recommendations, Claiming COVID-19 Is Airborne

Hundreds of scientists have said, there is proof that COVID-19, in tinier particles in the air, has the possibility of infecting people. 

And now, they are calling the World Health Organization to make some recommendations. This was reported on Saturday by the New York Times.

The WHO, for its part, said COVID-19 illness spreads mainly from one person to another through tiny droplets "from nose to mouth," which are expelled when an individual who has COVID-19 sneezes, speaks or coughs.

In an open letter it received, which, the New York Times said, the researchers are planning to publish next week, in a scientific journal, around "239 scientists in 32 countries outlined" the proofs that showed smaller particles could infect people.

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The WHO's Response

According to scientists, through the NYT report, "whether COVID-19 is carried by large droplets zooming through the air after a person sneezes, or breathes in by much tinier droplets "that may float the length of a room," the said virus is "borne through the air" and can possibly infect others when inhaled."

Nevertheless, the WHO said, the proof for the infection "being airborne was not convincing," the NYT indicated in its report. 

Specifically, during the past several months, WHO's technical lead of infection prevention and control, Dr. Bendetta Allegranzi said, they have stated many times, they "consider airborne transmission as a probable yet surely not backed or even clear evidence.

At the beginning of April, a team of 36 experts on aerosols and air quality pressed the health agency to consider the growing number of proofs on the pandemic's airborne transmission.

The WHO responded promptly and called the team's leader, Lidia Morawska, also a longtime consultant for the agency to set a meeting. 

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Hand-Washing Practice Emphasized over Aerosols

The said discussion though, some of the participants said, was controlled by a few experts who are loyal supporters of hand-washing, and believed that "the practice needed to be emphasized over aerosols." according to some participants, and the committee's advice remained unchanged.

Morawska, as well as the others, cited numerous occurrences that specify the virus's airborne transmission, specifically in "poorly ventilated and crowded indoor spaces."

They claimed the agency was making the synthetic difference between small aerosols and "larger droplets," although infested people are producing both.

According to an expert in airborne transmission expert, Linsey Marr, since 1946, it has been known that "talking and coughing produce aerosols. 

Aerosols not Transmissible

In addition, scientists have failed to grow the coronavirus coming from aerosols in the laboratory. However, it doesn't mean Dr. Marr said, "Aerosols are not communicable." 

He added that most of the samples in the said experiments have originated from hospital rooms that have a good flow of air that would dilute the "viral levels."

In most hospital buildings, according to Marr, "The rate of air exchange is typically much lower," letting the virus to "mount up the air and posture higher risk."

Lastly, the WHO is currently depending on the airborne transmission's outdated definition, the airborne transmission expert added that the WHO believes that "an airborne pathogen" such as the virus in measles, needs to be highly contagious and to travel a long distance.

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