-
Prevention of exposure to and spread of COVID-19 using air purifiers: challenges and concerns
-
Seunghon Ham
-
Epidemiol Health. 2020;42:e2020027. Published online April 17, 2020
-
DOI: https://doi.org/10.4178/epih.e2020027
-
-
27,288
View
-
1,371
Download
-
32
Web of Science
-
27
Crossref
-
Abstract
PDF
-
Abstract
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is now a pandemic. The Korean government has declared a red alert, which is the highest level of the national infectious disease alert system, and the World Health Organization has similarly declared its highest-level pandemic alert (phase 6). The spread of COVID-19 is an unprecedented worldwide public health problem that governments and individuals must work to overcome. Recently, an infection cluster arose in a call center in Seoul. To support call center companies, the Korean Ministry of Employment and Labor has proposed covering the costs of installing partitions and air purifiers, providing hand sanitizers, and supplying masks to prevent droplet and aerosol infections. Air purifiers are expected to be installed on the floor with the exhaust outlets at a higher level, such as the level of the desks or breathing zones of workers. When a worker coughs or releases droplets near a colleague’s respiratory system, the droplets may spread throughout the call center via air flow from air purifier. In this fashion, a single infected person can give rise to an infection cluster. Attempts to prevent infection must not lead to new infections, and the installation of air purifiers may cause new problems. Therefore, using air purifiers to control the spread of COVID-19 should be approached with caution.
-
Summary
-
Citations
Citations to this article as recorded by 
- A CFD study on the effect of portable air cleaner placement on airborne infection control in a classroom
Gen Pei, Parham Azimi, Donghyun Rim, Joseph G. Allen Environmental Science: Processes & Impacts.2024; 26(9): 1476. CrossRef - Smart sanitization on a budget: revolutionizing public transport hygiene post-COVID
J. Dinesh Peter, D. Raveena Judie Dolly, D. J. Jagannath, S. Allen Livingston Frontiers in Public Health.2024;[Epub] CrossRef - Prediction of Air Purifier Effectiveness for Eliminating Exhaled Droplets in a Confined Room
Yumeng Zhao, Alexander Russell, Kingsly Ambrose, Carl R. Wassgren Processes.2024; 12(9): 1917. CrossRef - Application of nanotechnology in air purifiers as a viable approach to protect against Corona virus
Ali Mahmoudi, Seyedeh Belin Tavakoly Sany, Marzieh Ahari Salmasi, Ali Bakhshi, Arad Bustan, Sahar heydari, Majid Rezayi, Fatemeh Gheybi IET Nanobiotechnology.2023; 17(4): 289. CrossRef - Indoor Air Purifiers in the Fight against Airborne Pathogens: The Advantage of Circumferential Outflow Diffusers
Yevgen Nazarenko, Chitra Narayanan, Parisa A. Ariya Atmosphere.2023; 14(10): 1520. CrossRef - Portable Air Purifiers’ Predicted Efficacy in Mitigating Airborne Pathogen Transmission in an Office Room Featuring Mixing Ventilation
Xiangdong Li, Milan J. Patel, Ivan S. Cole Fluids.2023; 8(12): 307. CrossRef - The effect of an air purifier on aerosol generation measurements during clinical motility testing
Wout Verbeure, Annelies Geeraerts, I‐Hsuan Huang, Lien Timmermans, Joran Tóth, Hannelore Geysen, Louise Cools, Florencia Carbone, Jolien Schol, Herman Devriese, Rico Haesaerts, Hideki Mori, Tim Vanuytsel, Jan Tack Neurogastroenterology & Motility.2022;[Epub] CrossRef - COVID-19 and air purifiers use
Beuy Joob, Viroj Wiwanitkit International Journal of Preventive Medicine.2022; 13(1): 47. CrossRef - Transforming healthcare through a digital revolution: A review of digital healthcare technologies and solutions
Nithesh Naik, B. M. Zeeshan Hameed, Nilakshman Sooriyaperakasam, Shankeeth Vinayahalingam, Vathsala Patil, Komal Smriti, Janhavi Saxena, Milap Shah, Sufyan Ibrahim, Anshuman Singh, Hadis Karimi, Karthickeyan Naganathan, Dasharathraj K. Shetty, Bhavan Pras Frontiers in Digital Health.2022;[Epub] CrossRef - The Influence of Plastic Barriers on Aerosol Infection Risk during Airport Security Checks
Shengwei Zhu, Tong Lin, John D. Spengler, Jose Guillermo Cedeño Laurent, Jelena Srebric Sustainability.2022; 14(18): 11281. CrossRef - Internet-of-nano-things (IoNT) driven intelligent face masks to combat airborne health hazard
Vishal Chaudhary, Akash Gautam, Poonam Silotia, Sumira Malik, Roana de Oliveira Hansen, Mohammad Khalid, Ajit Khosla, Ajeet Kaushik, Yogendra Kumar Mishra Materials Today.2022; 60: 201. CrossRef - SARS-CoV-2 airborne transmission: a review of risk factors and possible preventative measures using air purifiers
Mahshab Sheraz, Kaleem Anwar Mir, Ali Anus, Van Cam Thi Le, Seungdo Kim, Van Quyet Nguyen, Woo Ram Lee Environmental Science: Processes & Impacts.2022; 24(12): 2191. CrossRef - Influenza and Influenza Vaccine: A Review
Cynthia Nypaver, Cynthia Dehlinger, Chelsea Carter Journal of Midwifery & Women's Health.2021; 66(1): 45. CrossRef - Airborne transmission of virus-laden aerosols inside a music classroom: Effects of portable purifiers and aerosol injection rates
Sai Ranjeet Narayanan, Suo Yang Physics of Fluids.2021;[Epub] CrossRef - Application of Portable Air Purifiers for Mitigating COVID-19 in Large Public Spaces
Zhiqiang (John) Zhai, He Li, Robert Bahl, Keith Trace Buildings.2021; 11(8): 329. CrossRef - Societal Changes Due to “COVID-19”. An Analysis of the Tourism Sector of Galicia, Spain
Noelia Araújo-Vila, Jose A. Fraiz-Brea, Alexandra Matos Pereira Sustainability.2021; 13(15): 8449. CrossRef - Effects of Air Purifiers on the Spread of Simulated Respiratory Droplet Nuclei and Virus Aggregates
Ki Joon Heo, Inyong Park, Gunhee Lee, Keejung Hong, Bangwoo Han, Jae Hee Jung, Sang Bok Kim International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health.2021; 18(16): 8426. CrossRef - Improved estimates of 222 nm far-UVC susceptibility for aerosolized human coronavirus via a validated high-fidelity coupled radiation-CFD code
Andrew G. Buchan, Liang Yang, David Welch, David J. Brenner, Kirk D. Atkinson Scientific Reports.2021;[Epub] CrossRef - Genomic Variations in the Structural Proteins of SARS-CoV-2 and Their Deleterious Impact on Pathogenesis: A Comparative Genomics Approach
Taj Mohammad, Arunabh Choudhury, Insan Habib, Purva Asrani, Yash Mathur, Mohd Umair, Farah Anjum, Alaa Shafie, Dharmendra Kumar Yadav, Md. Imtaiyaz Hassan Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology.2021;[Epub] CrossRef - Reducing indoor particle exposure using mobile air purifiers—Experimental and numerical analysis
Adrian Tobisch, Lukas Springsklee, Lisa-Franziska Schäfer, Nico Sussmann, Martin J. Lehmann, Frederik Weis, Raoul Zöllner, Jennifer Niessner AIP Advances.2021;[Epub] CrossRef - The CO2 assessment in a school classroom for an optimal natural ventilation strategy = The CO2 assessment in a school classroom for an optimal natural ventilation strategy
Patricia Guijarro Miragaya, Tania Estay Leal, Lucia Patrón Saade, Ricardo Tendero Caballero Building & Management.2021; 5(3): 29. CrossRef - Use of antimicrobial mouthwashes (gargling) and nasal sprays by healthcare workers to protect them when treating patients with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 infection
Martin J Burton, Janet E Clarkson, Beatriz Goulao, Anne-Marie Glenny, Andrew J McBain, Anne GM Schilder, Katie E Webster, Helen V Worthington Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews.2020;[Epub] CrossRef - Antimicrobial mouthwashes (gargling) and nasal sprays to protect healthcare workers when undertaking aerosol-generating procedures (AGPs) on patients without suspected or confirmed COVID-19 infection
Martin J Burton, Janet E Clarkson, Beatriz Goulao, Anne-Marie Glenny, Andrew J McBain, Anne GM Schilder, Katie E Webster, Helen V Worthington Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews.2020;[Epub] CrossRef - Antimicrobial mouthwashes (gargling) and nasal sprays administered to patients with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 infection to improve patient outcomes and to protect healthcare workers treating them
Martin J Burton, Janet E Clarkson, Beatriz Goulao, Anne-Marie Glenny, Andrew J McBain, Anne GM Schilder, Katie E Webster, Helen V Worthington Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews.2020;[Epub] CrossRef - COVID-19: What do we know?
Steve Marshall, Michael Duryea, Greg Huang, Onur Kadioglu, James Mah, Juan Martin Palomo, Emile Rossouw, Dina Stappert, Kelton Stewart, Eser Tufekci American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics.2020; 158(5): e53. CrossRef - How chemical engineers can contribute to fight the COVID-19
Harrson S. Santana, Marcos R.P. de Souza, Mariana G.M. Lopes, Johmar Souza, Renan R.O. Silva, Mauri S.A. Palma, Wilson L.V. Nakano, Giovanni A.S. Lima, Guadalupe Munhoz, Dirceu Noriler, Osvaldir P. Taranto, João L. Silva Journal of the Taiwan Institute of Chemical Engineers.2020; 116: 67. CrossRef - Analysis on Applicability of Air Purifiers in Schools to Prevent the Spread of Airborne Infection of SARS-CoV-2
Bangwoo Han, Sang-Bok Kim, Gunhee Lee, Gi-Jeong Hong, In-Yong Park, Hak-Joon Kim, Ye-Wan Lee, Yong-Jin Kim, Sang-Hyeon Jeong, Seong-Hoon Shim, Jin-Tae Kim, Seon-Ah Roh, Tae-Jin Min, Wan-Ho Shin Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment.2020; 36(6): 832. CrossRef
|