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 Printable version |
Pandemic influenza virus inside buildings: Is there a risk of transmission by ventilation or air conditioning systems? |
Environnement, Risques & Santé. Volume 7, Number 4, 255-63, juillet-août 2008, Article original
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 Résumé
Article gratuit
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Author(s) : Véronique Ezratty, Fabien Squinazi |
Summary : The potential severity of the consequences of the threatened influenza pandemic requires a high level of preparation. As a part of planning for measures to protect populations and make it possible to continue business activities during such a pandemic, the possible transmission of the influenza virus within buildings through the ventilation or air conditioning systems must be assessed. The aim of this article is to explore the plausibility of contamination via this pathway compared with the “classic” transmission by large droplets as well as by direct or indirect contact, all requiring proximity between the source subject or object and the susceptible host. Using the available data, we dissected the problem into several parts for analysis, first investigating the possibility of virus distribution in the air, then its survival and its capacity to contaminate people at some distance, in the same area or in another part of the building. Our analysis suggests that the risk of spread within a building of a “regular” influenza virus through small-particle aerosols cannot be excluded. However, the risk of transmission, linked to preservation of the particle’s infectivity at long distances through HVAC systems seems improbable. Based on these conclusions, we investigated the measures, both positive and negative, that could be recommended to minimize the risk of influenza transmission in buildings with various HVAC systems and in buildings however ventilated. Finally, we attempted to identify the research needs and particular studies that would be useful to confirm the relevance of these recommendations and to answer the questions that remain unresolved. |
Keywords : aerosols, ventilation, air conditioning, bioterrorism, influenza human, disease outbreaks, influenza A virus, influenza B virus |
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