Infectious virus in exhaled breath of symptomatic seasonal influenza cases from a college community

• Published in: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS Vol. 115; no. 5; pp. 1081 - 1086
• Main Authors: Yan, Jing, Grantham, Michael, Pantelic, Jovan, de Mesquita, P. Jacob Bueno, Albert, Barbara, Liu, Fengjie, Ehrman, Sheryl, Milton, Donald K.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States National Academy of Sciences 30.01.2018
• Series: From the Cover
• Subjects: Aerosols; Air Microbiology; Biological Sciences; Body Mass Index; Body size; Copy number; Cough; Exhalation; Female; Humans; Influenza; Influenza, Human - transmission; Influenza, Human - virology; Male; Models, Theoretical; Prevalence; Respiratory diseases; Respiratory System; Respiratory Tract Infections - virology; Ribonucleic acid; RNA; RNA, Viral - genetics; Seasons; Sneezing; Students; Temperature; Universities; Vaccination; Viruses; Young Adult; influenza virus; vaccination effects; airborne infection; viral shedding; aerosol

Little is known about the amount and infectiousness of influenza virus shed into exhaled breath. This contributes to uncertainty about the importance of airborne influenza transmission. We screened 355 symptomatic volunteers with acute respiratory illness and report 142 cases with confirmed influenz...