McKinney Kelly R, Gong Yu Yang, Lewis Thomas G
New York City Office of Emergency Management, Brooklyn, NY 11202, USA.
J Environ Health. 2006 May;68(9):26-30; quiz 51-2.
Recent investigations into the March 2003 outbreak of SARS in Hong Kong have concluded that environmental factors played an important role in the transmission of the disease. These studies have focused on a particular outbreak event, the rapid spread of SARS throughout Amoy Gardens, a large, private apartment complex. They have demonstrated that, unlike a typical viral outbreak that is spread through person-to-person contact, the SARS virus in this case was spread primarily through the air. High concentrations of viral aerosols in building plumbing were drawn into apartment bathrooms through floor drains. The initial exposures occurred in these bathrooms. The virus-laden air was then transported by prevailing winds to adjacent buildings at Amoy Gardens, where additional exposures occurred. This article reviews the results of the investigations and provides recommendations for maintenance and other measures that building owners can take to help prevent environmental transmission of SARS and other flulike viruses in their buildings.
近期对2003年3月香港SARS疫情爆发的调查得出结论，环境因素在该疾病的传播中起到了重要作用。这些研究聚焦于一个特定的疫情事件，即SARS在大型私人公寓小区淘大花园的迅速传播。研究表明，与典型的通过人际接触传播的病毒爆发不同，此次SARS病毒主要通过空气传播。建筑物管道中高浓度的病毒气溶胶通过地漏被吸入公寓浴室。最初的感染就发生在这些浴室。随后，携带病毒的空气被盛行风吹到淘大花园的相邻建筑，在那里又发生了更多感染。本文回顾了调查结果，并为业主提供了维护及其他措施的建议，以帮助预防建筑物内SARS及其他类似流感病毒的环境传播。
