Truyols-Vives Joan, González-López Marta, Colom-Fernández Antoni, Einschütz-López Alexander, Sala-Llinàs Ernest, Doménech-Sánchez Antonio, García-Baldoví Herme, Mercader-Barceló Josep
Molecular Biology, Health Geography, and One Health Research Group (MolONE), University of the Balearic Islands, 07122 Palma, Spain.
Institute of Biophysics, Department of Natural Sciences and Sustainable Resources, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, 1180 Vienna, Austria.
Toxics. 2025 Jul 12;13(7):583. doi: 10.3390/toxics13070583.
Indoors, the infection risk of diseases transmitted through the airborne route is estimated from indoor carbon dioxide (CO) levels. However, the approaches to assess this risk do not account for the airborne concentration of pathogens, among other limitations. In this study, we analyzed the relationship between airborne SARS-CoV-2 levels and environmental parameters. Bioaerosols were sampled ( = 40) in hospital corridors of two wards differing in the COVID-19 severity of the admitted patients. SARS-CoV-2 levels were quantified using droplet digital PCR. SARS-CoV-2 was detected in 60% of the total air samples. The ward where the mildly ill patients were admitted had a higher occupancy, transit of people in the corridor, and CO levels, but there were no significant differences in SARS-CoV-2 detection between wards. The mean CO concentration in the positive samples was 569 ± 35.6 ppm. Considering all samples, the CO levels in the corridor were positively correlated with patient door openings but inversely correlated with SARS-CoV-2 levels. In conclusion, airborne SARS-CoV-2 can be detected indoors with optimal ventilation, and its levels do not scale with CO concentration in hospital corridors. Therefore, CO assessment should not be interpreted as a surrogate of airborne viral presence in all indoor spaces.
在室内，通过空气传播途径传播的疾病的感染风险是根据室内二氧化碳（CO）水平来估算的。然而，评估这种风险的方法存在诸多局限性，其中并未考虑病原体的空气传播浓度。在本研究中，我们分析了空气传播的严重急性呼吸综合征冠状病毒2（SARS-CoV-2）水平与环境参数之间的关系。在收治的新冠肺炎患者病情严重程度不同的两个病房的医院走廊采集了生物气溶胶样本（n = 40）。使用滴液数字PCR对SARS-CoV-2水平进行定量。在所有空气样本中，60%检测到了SARS-CoV-2。收治轻症患者的病房 occupancy、走廊人员流动和CO水平较高，但两个病房之间SARS-CoV-2检测结果无显著差异。阳性样本中的平均CO浓度为569±35.6 ppm。考虑所有样本，走廊中的CO水平与患者病房门开启次数呈正相关，但与SARS-CoV-2水平呈负相关。总之，在通风良好的室内环境中可以检测到空气传播的SARS-CoV-2，其水平与医院走廊中的CO浓度不成比例。因此，CO评估不应被解释为所有室内空间中空气传播病毒存在的替代指标。
