Virus remains active on the skin for nine hours

2020-10-18

A study found that the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus remains active on the skin for nine hours, confirming the need to wash your hands frequently to fight the covid-19 pandemic.

In comparison, the pathogen that causes flu survives on the skin for about 1.8 hours, says the study by Japanese researchers and published this month in the journal “Clinical Infectious Diseases”.

“The nine-hour survival of SARS-CoV-2 (the strain of the virus that causes covid-19 disease) on human skin can increase the risk of transmission by contact compared to IAV (influenza A or influenza A virus) , thus accelerating the pandemic ”, say the study authors.

Japanese researchers tested skin samples taken from autopsy specimens about a day after death.