Asymptomatic Carriers of COVID-19 Make It Tough to Target | Infection Control Today

“In contrast to SARS-CoV-1, most secondary cases of virus transmission of SARS-CoV-2 appear to be occurring in community settings rather than healthcare settings,” the NIH says. “However, healthcare settings are also vulnerable to the introduction and spread of SARS-CoV-2, and the stability of SARS-CoV-2 in aerosols and on surfaces likely contributes to transmission of the virus in healthcare settings.”

The findings mirror those in 2 other recent studies by Dutch and Japanese investigators that also point to the problem of asymptomatic carriers of COVID-19. Japanese researchers looked at the 634 passengers who tested positive for COVID-19 on the Diamond Princess cruise ship. They found that 17.9% of these passengers were asymptomatic. Dutch researchers estimate that the “the proportion of pre-symptomatic transmission was 48% (95%CI 32-67%) for Singapore and 62% (95%CI 50-76%) for Tianjin, China.”

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