Thats a personal decision that will differ from person to person. These cookies may also be used for advertising purposes by these third parties. The subvariant made up 74% of new infections as of April 16, 2022. The ARs among household contacts by index patient vaccination status were lowest among those who received a booster dose (42.7%, 47 of 110) and those who were fully vaccinated <5 months before the index date (43.6%, 17 of 39). Once a saver, always a saver: Warren Buffett says generational wealth isnt what it used to be in his annual letter Its bigger than the housing crisis: An influential economist just blamed NIMBYs for American decline, and Elon Musk CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice, Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. "So the safest place you can be [with other people] is still going to be outdoors," she says. 3501 et seq. When Should You Test (and Possibly Retest) After Being Exposed to COVID-19? Thank you for taking the time to confirm your preferences. But Marr stressed the study's conditions don't reflect real-world scenarios. After three years, most people know how to do that: vaccines, masks, physical distancing, handwashing and lets not forget ventilation. Vaccination status was not always verified, and the analysis did not account for potential variations in prevention practices (e.g., frequency of mask use). Age at index date was determined from date of birth or self-reported age. More outdoor air can decrease the risk of transmission. But you might still decide to mask in crowded, indoor places like grocery stores and train stations. How does COVID-19 spread between people? All rights reserved. A practicing physician Board Certified in both Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, Dr. Marshall serves on staff at Harvard Medical School and practices at Massachusetts General Hospital at the MGH Chelsea Urgent Care and the MGH Revere Health Center, where she is currently working on the frontlines caring for patients with COVID-19. First, what is the Covid-19 risk in your community? The questions below are written in past tense to help you assess the likelihood that you were infected when you were around a person with COVID-19. 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." Your effort and contribution in providing this feedback is much Vaccinated residents with breakthrough infections were significantly less likely to transmit them: 28% versus 36% for those who were unvaccinated. In each instance, infectious amounts of Omicron were recovered for longer amounts of time than the samples of the original virus. But that doesn't mean that being outdoors isn't going to. If you are high-risk or have close contact with someone who is high risk, wear a mask indoors, even if you're just running inside to use the restroom or grab something quickly from a store. Mohammad ShajahanAnadolu Agency/Getty Images, LinkedIn has officially entered its cringe era, and its working. Here, experts discuss just how contagious BA.5 isand how you can go the extra step to protect yourself, even during outdoor activities this summer. Its no surprise, then, that more and more stories have emerged of people speculating that they caught COVID-19 outside, which can be a bit unsettling to hear as cases continue to rise in many parts of the country. When asked about the new Hong Kong results, he said any findings based on the "same old techniques" in a laboratory don't change that, since figuring out transmission is about more than just how viruses survive within controlled settings. COVID-19 still can be transmitted in outdoor settings . You can review and change the way we collect information below. CDC has updated select ways to operate healthcare systems effectively in response to COVID-19 vaccination. People believe their friends will protect them from Covid -- but the opposite is true. 552a; 44 U.S.C. Cookies used to make website functionality more relevant to you. Wear a well-fitting mask or respirator when the COVID-19 Community Level is high. of pages found at these sites. The median interval between index date and date of interview was 24 days (IQR=1729 days). And people who are vaccinated likely carry less infectious virus particles than people who are not. Being around people who are symptomatic increases the risk of transmission. The Omicron variant of the coronavirus appears to have spread between two fully vaccinated people who were staying in separate rooms across the hall from each other in a Hong Kong quarantine. Surfaces play less of a role than aerosol transmission, but its still good practice to wash your hands well or to use hand sanitizer if you shake peoples hands and touch frequently used surfaces. ** 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). Though the BA.5 wave hasnt caused a significant spike in hospitalizations or deaths in South Africa, certain locations hit by BA.5, like Portugal, have seen an uptick in hospitalizations. This, to me, is no different from a decision to go back to the gym, resume travel or dine indoors in restaurants. Outdoor social gatherings are very safe, and certainly lower risk than the equivalent setting indoors. Why it may be harder to catch COVID-19 from surfaces than we first thought, Acknowledge COVID-19 is airborne, Lancet report urges as more evidence mounts, Omicron subvariant BA.2 raises new questions about puzzling evolution of virus behind COVID-19, Why an Omicron infection alone might not offer the immune boost you'd expect. "BA.5 is currently the predominant strain in circulation," epidemiologist Matt Weissenbach, DrPH, senior director of clinical affairs at Wolters Kluwer Health, told Health. What Do Epidemiologists Think? For purposes of entry into the United States, vaccines accepted will include FDA approved or authorized and WHO Emergency Use Listing vaccines. You should wear a mask if its impossible to create distance (ideally a well-fitted one, like a KN95) and take a COVID test before you go out, Patel said. 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. 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 . Analysis of AR among household contacts excluded eight persons with unknown case status (persons for whom it was not known whether COVID-19compatible symptoms were present and whether SARS-CoV-2 testing had occurred [or if testing occurred, the results were unknown]). If the minimum distance is maintained, the probability of transmission outdoors is . Persons without symptoms and who did not have a positive SARS-CoV-2 test result were not considered to have a case of COVID-19. These cookies perform functions like remembering presentation options or choices and, in some cases, delivery of web content that based on self-identified area of interests. What is the difference between people who are asymptomatic or pre-symptomatic? 1. Omicron BA.5 May Increase the Risk of Outdoor TransmissionHere's How to Stay Safe Although being outdoors is overall the safer option, when a virus is more contagious, it's more contagious. Theres free communication of the air with the atmosphere, and that really disperses aerosols [that can carry COVID-19], so the risk would be a lot lower, Roberts explained. "When a variant is slated to be more or less transmissible than another, it applies as a blanket statement regardless of setting,'' said Dr. Weissenbach. Beta, Delta, and Omicron, to name a few. Sie knnen Ihre Einstellungen jederzeit ndern. Did you encounter any technical issues? We have two little kids who are too young to be vaccinated, but we also recognize that its going to be very difficult to keep them from getting the coronavirus given how transmissible this new variant is. But he warned the public not to panic, and avoid resorting to heavy-handed precautions. Even past infection or immunization don't offer quite as much protection as would be expected. Multicomponent COVID-19 prevention strategies, including up-to-date vaccination, isolation of infected persons, and mask use at home, are important to reduce Omicron transmission in household settings. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. On several types of paper, infectious amounts of ancestral SARS-CoV-2 were only recoverable for five to 15 minutes compared to more than 30 minutes for Omicron. For the most cautious, a park or a hiking trail is the only truly outdoor space. Some will think those activities are worth the risk. You will be subject to the destination website's privacy policy when you follow the link. It's been almost two years since the world has completely changed thanks to COVID, and while we understand the virus more, people are still catching COVID and cases are spiking in certain areas. While outdoor transmission of COVID-19 in low-risk settings is "generally uncommon," Dr. Adalja says that it's . MMWR and Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report are service marks of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The emergence of BA.5 and other highly contagious omicron subvariants is definitely concerning, experts said. Received a booster dose was defined as having received an additional dose after completion of the primary COVID-19 vaccination series before the index date. Yes, you can catch BA.5 outside, but its more likely that youll catch it indoors than outdoors. Interferon lambda, an injectable drug in development, is already being compared to Paxlovid. Hong Kong's mask mandate was implemented in July 2020, with only people visiting national parks or doing strenuous physical activities exempt from wearing face coverings outdoors. The risk of outdoor transmission is exponentially lower than indoor transmission, and a well-ventilated, less crowded space also has much lower risk than people packed together in an unventilated space. Box 500 Station A Toronto, ON Canada, M5W 1E6. All Rights Reserved. Thus, whether someone was tested and how many times they were tested depended on individual and social factors. Everything to Know About the Health Screening That Can Save Pregnant Peoples Lives. If multiple factors below indicate higher transmission risk, you should consider adding more prevention actions. Among 431 household contacts, 227 were classified as having a case of COVID-19 (attack rate [AR]=52.7%). 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