Wen: The risk of outdoor transmission is very low to the point that its virtually nonexistent. Some persons who were fully vaccinated had unknown dates for completion of their primary vaccination series. Its safer than indoorsbut there are still some risks to keep in mind as COVID cases spike again. People in the US wont face a shutdown like the one currently in place in Shanghai, where no one is allowed to leave their residential compounds, Covid testing is mandatory and food supplies are running low. Experts say outdoor transmission has always been a thingwith alpha, delta, omicron, and now BA.5. Were hearing anecdotal reports of people testing positive who think they got it outdoors, said Dr. Scott Roberts, associate medical director of Infection Prevention at Yale New Haven Hospital. Outdoor settings were generally considered "safe" during the COVID-19 pandemic. New studies suggest that BA.4 and BA.5, currently sweeping the U.S. and countries around the globe, have a growth advantage over BA.2 similar to the growth advantage BA.2 had over BA.1. She is also a host and contributing editor for Harvard Health Publications (HHP), the publishing division of Harvard Medical School. "The air movement [outdoors] is more random and the virus won't build up.". 552a; 44 U.S.C. Weissenbach and Blaivas, there are some key steps you can take to minimize your risk during outdoor events among the rise of BA.5 cases. appreciated. Some persons who were fully vaccinated had unknown dates for completion of their primary vaccination series. https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.12.27.21268278v1, https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.01.09.22268984v1, https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.08.16.21262121v2. "Certainly I don't want to see people going back to wiping their groceries down with disinfectants and leaving things sitting for days on end in the hope that what virus might be there isn't going to infect them. All authors have completed and submitted the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors form for disclosure of potential conflicts of interest. Longer exposure timeincreasesthe risk of transmission (for example, contact longer than 15 minutes is more likely to result in transmission than two minutes of contact). Crowded settings can raise your likelihood of being close to someone with COVID-19. The median interval between index date and date of interview was 24 days (IQR=1729 days). When an . Testing prior to getting together with others tells people if they are infectious and need to avoid the gathering. they should expect rapid transmission of COVID-19 that will prevent students . BA.5's mutations have also allowed it to sneak past the body's immune system more easily. CNN: What about outdoors? A majority of index patients were White (59.0%, 108 of 183), and 21.3% (39 of 183) were Hispanic/Latino. Don't they both mean someone without symptoms? Persons who reported any signs or symptoms during the course of their recent illness were considered to have COVID-19compatible symptoms. Jurisdictions identified persons who were considered potentially eligible for participation through obtaining laboratory line lists of persons who had sequence-confirmed Omicron (B.1.1.529 lineage and its sublineages) or whose sequencing results were pending. Earlier this week the CDC updated its recommendations to encourage a second COVID-19 booster shot for certain immunocompromised individuals and people over the age of 50 who received an initial booster dose at least 4 months ago. Greater COVID transmissibility due to Omicron variants means greater . So some people may want to mask up in certain outdoor situations. Health and Human Services. If you have a question you'd like us to consider for a future post, email us at goatsandsoda@npr.org with the subject line: "Weekly Coronavirus Questions." Did you encounter any technical issues? All Rights Reserved. What is the difference between people who are asymptomatic or pre-symptomatic? The protective measures we talked about early in the pandemic still work against Omicron. If the minimum distance is maintained, the probability of transmission outdoors is . Thats a personal decision that will differ from person to person. All variants and subvariants have changes in their genetic code, compared to the original virus they came from. The New York Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA), which oversees subways and buses and lost billions of dollars in passenger revenue in 2020, spent $484 million last year in its response to. Among 431 household contacts, 227 were classified as having a case of COVID-19 (attack rate [AR] = 52.7%). Studies conducted prior to omicron show that being outside greatly reduces your risk of infection with the coronavirus. Right now were waiting on additional data to confirm that COVID transmission is occurring outdoors.. A variety of newsletters you'll love, delivered straight to you. the date of publication. Thus, whether someone was tested and how many times they were tested depended on individual and social factors. Heres what experts know and dont know about COVID spread outdoors: At this point, we are very familiar with uncertainty when it comes to COVID. Not only does it keep your cheeks warm, but who wants to take their gloves off to fuss with a mask in sub-freezing temps? A new study out of Hong Kong suggests Omicron might be surviving longer on everyday objects than its early predecessor raising questions about which basic precautions to prevent surface-based transmission might still be warranted. According to an Epidemiological Update from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), "the current growth advantage for the BA.4 and BA.5 variants of concerncompared to the dominant variant BA.2 is probably due to their ability to evade immune protection against infection induced by prior infection and/or vaccination, particularly if this has waned over time." Of those with known SARS-CoV-2 infection history, eleven (6.1%) of 181 index patients and nine (4.7%) of 192 household contacts with confirmed or probable COVID-19 reported a previous SARS-CoV-2 infection. If its in green or yellow or low or medium risk you could choose not to, depending on the other two factors. ** Analysis for attack rates by combined vaccination status combined persons who were fully vaccinated or had received a booster dose into one category (full/booster) and persons who were partially vaccinated or unvaccinated into another category (partial/unvacc). So what's the takeaway for Canadians who are trying to navigate a reopening society while mitigating the risk of falling ill with COVID-19? . "If you're standing outside, shoulder-to-shoulder with hundreds of unmasked strangers [for an extended period of time], it certainly has the potential to mimic a cramped, indoor setting," said Dr. Weissenbach. The CDC doesn't currently recommend wearing a mask outdoors. Of course, omicron is the most transmissible variant yet. Each week, we answer frequently asked questions about life during the coronavirus crisis. The 15-minute rule no longer applies. In other words, 10 people crowded at an al fresco table doesnt equal safety just because there are only a handful of people around. The findings from this investigation reinforce the importance of multi-component prevention strategies, including up-to-date vaccination, isolation of infected persons, and mask use at home, to reduce Omicron transmission in household settings. September 7, 2022. Greater transmissibility means greater transmissibility in any setting, indoors or outdoorseven if outside is still safer, Maimuna Majumder, an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School and a computational epidemiologist at Boston Childrens Hospital, recently told NPR. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. That put COVID-19 among the least transmissible human diseases. Total coronavirus infection numbers remain low in Japan. On the higher end of the spectrum, mumps has an R0 of 12; measles tops the list at 18. Early contact tracing studies detected far more indoor transmission of the coronavirus than outdoor. US Travel Association. The likelihood of catching Covid-19 outdoors is low but increases in crowded areas or at events where people are close together for long periods of time . Namely, we have vaccines and boosters, which protect very well against severe illness and also reduce the risk of Covid-19 infection. She cautions that outdoor tents that dont have flaps that let air in are not that different from being indoors, as far as COVID transmission risk goes. 4:12 AM EDT, Thu April 14, 2022, 'Our priorities are skewed here': Doctor weighs in on Covid laxity, HINES, ILLINOIS - APRIL 01: Army veteran Robert Hall waits the recommended 15 minutes to see if he will have any adverse reactions after receiving his second COVID-19 booster shot at Edward Hines Jr. VA Hospital on April 01, 2022 in Hines, Illinois. While outdoor events are safer than indoor events, theyre not 100% safe, Majumder told the news outlet. Powered and implemented by Interactive Data Managed Solutions. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Omicron transmission occurred in 124 (67.8%) of 183 households. "We've been so focused on airborne transmission and masks that, maybe, we've kind of neglected to wash our hands," Marr said. To help us with these questions, I spoke with CNN Medical Analyst Dr. Leana Wen, an emergency physician and professor of health policy and management at the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health. BOSTON -- As Omicron cases are sweeping the nation, some experts are warning that being outdoors may not provide as much protection as before. and/or the original MMWR paper copy for printable versions of official text, figures, and tables. As such, I am attending large events, including indoor conferences and meetings. You could decide to go to an outdoor lunch with your colleagues, but skip the happy hour in a packed bar. But as the months passed, scientific consensus began to crystallize, suggesting some of those precautions might be missing the bigger picture of how the SARS-CoV-2 virus transmits. * The interval was estimated by calculating the number of days between the symptom onset or positive test result date for the index patient and that of the household contact. In addition, surfaces may play a greater role in Omicron transmission. If multiple factors below indicate higher transmission risk, you should consider adding more prevention actions. The other/multiple race category included American Indian or Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, another race specified by the person not in the provided list, or multiple races. Having a prior infection with another Omicron subvariant does provide some immunity against BA.4 and BA.5 but it's not absolute. Omicron sublineages are still increasing and cause increased transmission and infect Overall, spending time outside is a safer mechanism of prevention against COVID because of the unlimited ventilation. Models for longitudinal data: a generalized estimating equation approach. Ahead, experts explain what you need to know about this subvariant, outdoor transmission, and staying safe as you enjoy your summer. Contact her at: lauren.pelley@cbc.ca. Its a nasty stomach bugand cases have been rising since August. And in a study of 64 college football games during the 2020 season involving 1,190 athletes, researchers at Texas A&M University found zero spread of COVID during game play based on three postgame PCR tests over the course of a week likely because of the outdoor setting and short duration of close contact, experts say. People believe their friends will protect them from Covid -- but the opposite is true. Someone who coughed onto their hand and then touched a door could seed virus there and transmit it to you if you touch. And Eric Topol, MD . A confirmed case in a household contact was receipt of a positive SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid amplification test result or antigen test result (through local or home testing) reported 14 days after the index date. CDC is not responsible for the content With the global evolution of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the causative agent of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), for almost 2 years, various control strategies have been utilized around the world. Delta had a slightly higher reproductive rate of around 5.1. But being outside is still much, much safer than being indoors. Spreading COVID outside was possible, but not probable, experts advised in 2020, urging cooped-up citizens to turn to Mother Nature as an antidote to the isolation of lockdowns. Cleaning hands at . 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