COVID-19 newsletter

Published: 19/04/2020

Every week AIDA International provides only evidence-based information on the COVID-19 pandemic to freediving community.
Please find our week 2 newsletter.
 
According to the World Health Organization situation report from16 April 2020 in the past 24 hours no new country/territory/area reported cases of COVID-19. There are 1 991 562 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 130 885 death. It is estimated that 20% of affected patients will need oxygen.
The study «Towards aerodynamically equivalent COVID-19 1.5 m social distancing for walking and running» (B. Blocken et al., 2020) investigates whether if one person is moving nearby another person at 1.5 m distance or beyond could cause droplet transfer to this second person. Spread of this type of viruses can occur effectively with saliva, often in the form of micro-droplets, when a person sneezes, coughs or even exhales.
 
When people move, they are followed by an aerosol plume of breath and sweat. The distance of 1.5-2 meters can no longer be considered safe. Scientists have concluded that if a person walks, the person following him or her should be at least 5 meters away.
If two people run in the same direction, there should be at least 10 m between them, and if they are cycling, 20 m. When passing each other, people should also keep a lateral distance of 1.5-2 m.
Another important study is related to the protection from COVID-19 with conventional masks. Conventional medical and reusable gauze masks can allow coronavirus to pass freely if the patient coughs through them.
Patients with COVID-19 were asked to cough 5 times through different masks on a Petri dish at 20 cm from the mouth. SARS-CoV-2 particles were found on all dishes as well as on the outer surfaces of the masks.
Thus, conventional masks worn on COVID-19 patients do not protect healthy people (especially medical personnel) from infection. Other protective equipment may make it difficult for the patient to breathe. That could be an explanation why thousands of medics are infected worldwide.

If you would like to get more information about COVID-19 studies, we may recommend well-respected sources, e.g.:
 
We wish you stay safe and healthy.
 
References
1. B. Blocken , F. Malizia , T. van Druenen , T. Marchal. Towards aerodynamically equivalent COVID19 1.5 m social distancing for walking and running.
2. Bae S, Kim MC, Kim JY, et al. Effectiveness of Surgical and Cotton Masks in Blocking SARS-CoV-2: A Controlled Comparison in 4 Patients [published online ahead of print, 2020 Apr 6]. Ann Intern Med. 2020;M20-1342.

 

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