Coronavirus within US households is high, occurs quicker than previously estimated: Study

According to the latest COVID-19 study, the transmission of the infection within households is high and occurs quickly, and can arise from both children and adults. The researchers assessed 101 houses in the US for their new study. The preliminary findings from the ongoing research showed that 51 percent of other members living with a person who was COVID-19 positive also became infected.

Carlos G. Grijalva, study co-author and associate professor of Health Policy at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in the US said that they observed that after a first household member contracted the virus several infections were rapidly detected in the household. The infections occurred fast, whether the first sick household member was either a child or an adult, Grijalva said.

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Secondary household infections occurred within five days

The study is published in the journal Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report said that at least 75 percent of the secondary household infections occurred within five days of the first person in the household experiencing symptoms. The research further revealed that less than half of household members felt symptoms when they first tested positive, and many reported no symptoms throughout the seven-day daily follow-up period.

"In the absence of an efficient approach for identification of infections without regard to symptoms, these findings suggest that prompt adoption of isolation measures as soon as a person feels ill might reduce the probability of household transmission," the scientists wrote in the study.

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The researchers further said the initial household member who experienced symptoms was considered the 'index patient' in the study, while other household members may have been infected concurrently but developed symptoms at different times or remained asymptomatic. The researchers, however, believe the findings still underline the potential for transmission from symptomatic or asymptomatic contact with household members and the importance of quarantine.

Prompt isolation of persons with COVID-19 can reduce household transmission,  the scientists said while adding that persons who suspect that they might have COVID-19 should isolate, stay at home, and use a separate bedroom and bathroom if feasible.

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(With PTI inputs)