Xinhua News Agency, Rome, March 22 (Reporter He Fei) A new study jointly carried out by the Italian David Hume Foundation and the Italian Marche Region shows that improving classroom ventilation can effectively reduce the risk of contracting the new coronavirus. Up to 6 air changes per hour can reduce the number of new crown cases by more than 80%.
The study, published on the 22nd, showed that the researchers compared 10,441 classrooms in the Marche region between September 13, 2021 and January 31, 2022, of which 316 were equipped with mechanical ventilation systems. The other 10,125 rooms are not equipped.
The results of the study showed that the number of new crown cases in classrooms equipped with mechanical ventilation systems was significantly lower, and the better the ventilation, the lower the number of new crown cases.
Specifically, compared to classrooms without ventilation systems, the number of cases in classrooms with 2.4 air changes per hour decreased by 40%, and the number of cases in classrooms with 4 air changes per hour decreased by about 67%. Six times the number of cases in the classroom decreased by nearly 83%.
The study also showed that with the most efficient ventilation systems installed, the infection rate of Italian students could drop from 250 infections per 100,000 people to 50 infections per 100,000 people.
According to local media reports, most schools in Italy lack mechanical ventilation systems, and Italian epidemic prevention regulations require schools to open windows for ventilation when weather conditions permit.
After a brief respite from February to early March, the new crown epidemic in Italy has rebounded in recent days.
Statistics released by the Italian Ministry of Health on the 22nd showed that the country had more than 96,000 new confirmed cases of the new crown that day.