Aggravated exposure risks of children to multipath transmitted pathogens in indoor environments
Zhijian Liu1, Lina Hu1, Chenxing Hu2
1Department of Power Engineering, North China Electric Power University, Baoding, Hebei 071003, China.
Insights
Children face significant indoor exposure risks from respiratory pathogens. While airborne risks are similar to adults, children
Area of Science:
- Environmental Health Engineering
- Aerosol Science
- Pediatric Infectious Disease Epidemiology
Background:
- The post-epidemic era necessitates understanding respiratory pathogen transmission in indoor settings.
- Limited data exists on children's susceptibility, indoor aerodynamics, and exposure risks to airborne pathogens.
- Indoor ventilation significantly influences aerosol dispersion and pathogen exposure.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate children's exposure risks to respiratory pathogens in indoor environments.
- To evaluate the impact of indoor ventilation strategies on aerosol dispersion and deposition.
- To compare airborne and contact transmission risks between children and adults.
Main Methods:
- Conducted experimental and computational investigations.
- Analyzed aerosol dispersion influenced by ventilation (air supply modes, air change rate).
- Assessed particle deposition on the human body and surfaces.
Main Results:
- Indoor ventilation structures, including air change rate, significantly impact aerosol dispersion.
- A substantial portion of aerosol particles deposit on the human body, increasing with higher air change rates.
- Airborne transmission risk shows minimal differences between children and adults.
Conclusions:
- Balanced ventilation strategies are crucial to manage aerosol particle deposition.
- Children exhibit a surprisingly high risk of infection via contact transmission due to frequent interactive activities and deposition patterns.
- Further research into children's specific exposure pathways and prevention strategies is warranted.
Abstract:
Considering the significance of multipath transmissions of respiratory pathogens in the post-epidemic era, surprisingly little is acknowledged regarding the susceptibility, short-term aerodynamics, and exposure risk of children in indoor environments. Here, experimental and computational investigations were conducted to evaluate the exposure risks associated with respiratory pathogens. The dominant effect of recirculation structure originating from indoor ventilation, including air supply modes and air change rate, on aerosol dispersion was quantitatively proved. A large proportion of deposited aerosol particles was captured by the human body, and deposited particles may further increase under high air change rate, which required a balanced ventilation strategy. Little discrepancies existed between adults and children in exposure risk by airborne transmission. The infection probability by contact transmission for children, however, may be surprisingly high due to high frequency in interactive activities, deposition on upper and lower limbs of accompanying parents, and the wall within arm span.
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