New Study Shows A Household With COVID19 Patient Might Be A Hotspot For COVID19 Transmission

The transmission of COVID19 in the United States has reached its all-time high with surging cases in many states. However, a new study has found that homes that have patients with COVID19 continue to be hotspots for the spread of the virus even if overall community transmission is low. Experts have observed 54 studies across more than 20 countries and come up with these findings. Medical analyst Dr. Leana Wen has said that the findings of the new study show how contagious the virus is and how difficult it is to keep people safe who are living in crowded or multigenerational housing. The findings of the study have shown that spouses are at higher risk of catching COVID19 as compared to other family members. They share the same room with the infected partner and have sexual intimacy and prolonged contact. The study has been released in the journal JAMA Network Open.

Experts have said that the risk of contracting the virus is even higher when family members as well start to show symptoms of the disease such as sneezing, cough, body aches, chills, and fever. However, the risk is low if they do not show any visible signs of the ailment. The new study has found that the risk of transmission has been high between adults as compared to between adults and children. A recent study, which has been done by experts from the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), has shown that the spread of the virus among members of the household takes place quite quickly. Experts have said that around 55 percent of people who have been living with someone with COVID19 have been infected within a week. Nearly 75 percent of secondary infections have happened within five days after the initial patient has started showing first signs of the disease. This study has reported that fewer than half of the infected members of the households have started showing signs at the time when the first infection has been diagnosed. The CDC team has said that many people have shown no signs of the disease during the seven days follow up. It emphasizes the possibility of the virus spread through asymptomatic secondary contacts and the value of quarantine.

The new study has noted that isolating from other household members might be difficult for the person who has been detected with the virus when you stay in a small house with the children. Experts have said that if somebody has older people in the household who have a weaker immune system. It is better to isolate them to one side of the household so kids and other family members are not in close proximity with them. They have said if it is a child who is suspected to have contracted the virus; it is advisable to isolate the child along with one adult. However, it might be difficult for single parents. Health experts have said that in such a situation good neighborhood network might be beneficial for single parents. However, the new study clearly mentions that all people living in a household with an infected person need to be kept in isolation. It says that the clusters of people who live together are at a greater risk of contracting the virus from one another. A recent study has advised that people living in the same household with an infected person need to wear a face mask all the time. Experts who have been involved in the study have said that wearing the mask can reduce the risk of virus spread by 79 percent when family members start using face masks before the first person starts showing symptoms.