A new type of coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 was able to remain viable on some surfaces for up to three days, and in the air for several hours, reports the New England Journal of Medicine, citing a study by a group of American scientists.
Experts analyzed the behavior of the predecessor of a new type of coronavirus – SARS-CoV-1, which also appeared in China in 2002. According to available data, in 2002 and 2003, 8 thousand people became infected with the virus; since 2004, no new cases have been reported. Experts found similarities in the distribution of the two types of virus, in particular in their behavior on various surfaces.
Experimental results showed that SARS-CoV-2 remains viable in air for three hours, and up to 72 hours on surfaces such as plastic and stainless steel. At the same time, it functions on cardboard for no longer than a day, and on copper it survives for a maximum of four hours.
At the same time, infectious disease specialists from the Guangzhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention conducted a study showing how long traces of the coronavirus can remain on everyday objects used by the SARS-CoV-2 carrier.
In the spring of 2020, experts were able to monitor hotel rooms in which 39 patients with coronavirus were quarantined. It turned out that the virus persisted indoors for up to 28 days. For four weeks in a row, traces of it were found on a washbasin in one of the bathrooms, three weeks in a sewer hole, and two weeks on a toilet seat. On average, the traces of SARS-CoV-2 remained on various surfaces for five days.