The World Health Organization (WHO) admitted yesterday (Tuesday) the emergence of evidence about the transmission of the emerging coronavirus virus that causes Covid-19 disease in the air, after a group of 239 international scientists sounded the alarm about this type of transmission.

"We acknowledge that evidence appears in this area, and therefore we must be open to this possibility and understand its implications," WHO official Benedetta Allegranzi said during an online press conference.

"The possibility of (the virus) being transported by air in particularly crowded public places cannot be ruled out. Evidence must be gathered and interpreted," she added. Allegranzi recommended "effective ventilation in enclosed spaces and physical spacing, and when this is not possible, we recommend wearing a muzzle."

On Monday, a group of 239 international scientists called on health authorities and the World Health Organization to "recognize the potential transmission of a Covid-19 infection by air." In an article published in Oxford University's Clinical Infectious Diseases, scientists said it was found that particles that came out with exhalation could infect those who inhale them.

What does the virus mean by air?

The method that was known to transmit the Corona virus is close or direct contact, especially through droplets caused by coughing and sneezing, and talking directly to a person close to the patient, and possibly through the surfaces on which this spray is located to be later attached to the hands of healthy people. This spray is heavy and falls about a meter away.

Based on this, it is advised to physical distance, wash hands and put a muzzle.

As for the airborne corona virus - also called transmission through the air or in the air - it means that the virus particles are also present in a microscopic mist (a diameter of less than 5 microns) that the infected exhales, and this spray is lighter and can remain stuck in the atmosphere indoors for hours, Others may inhale it.

There is no scientific consensus that air transport plays a role in infection, but scientist Julian Tang of Leicester University - one of the signatories of the letter - saw that the World Health Organization did not prove the opposite, "the absence of evidence is not evidence of the absence" of this possibility.

With the start of lifting the isolation procedures, it is urgent - according to these experts - to better ventilate the workplace, as well as schools, hospitals and nursing homes, and to adopt injury control tools such as advanced air filters and special UV radiation that eliminate germs in the ventilation ducts.

The authorities in the United States and Europe are ahead of the World Health Organization in this regard, advising the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to "increase air circulation as possible".

ventilation

The European counterpart to these centers explained on June 22 that ventilation may reduce the strength of the virus in the atmosphere and expel it, and may have the opposite effect if the ventilation system does not renew air in the room itself.

A great example of this is the recording of a hot spot of injuries that started in a Chinese canton restaurant in January, after a person with no symptoms was transferred to customers sitting on two adjacent tables, without any contact with them, and it appears that the ventilation system has resulted in blowing out The virus from one table to another.

Other injuries on a Chinese bus and in the ranks of an American choir support this hypothesis.

The World Health Organization - which has been criticized for being late with the muzzle recommendation - was accused of refusing to acknowledge the growing signs of the virus spreading through the air.

"We are trying to enhance our knowledge that appears about the transmission of (the virus)," said WHO official Maria Van Kerkhof, noting that the health organization will publish an information card on this matter "in the coming days."

"The epidemic is accelerating and has not reached its climax yet," said the organization's director general, Tedros Adhanom Gebresus, adding that "we are all vulnerable to it," saying that the virus - which has killed more than half a million people - took "the world's population hostage."

"We have not seen anything like that since 1918 في," he said, referring to the Spanish flu pandemic that has claimed tens of millions of people around the world, and stressed that "national unity and global solidarity are necessary and without them we will not be able to fight the virus."

A super Japanese computer that recommends travel and work changes

And simulations of a high-capacity computer in Japan indicated that operating suburban trains with open windows and reducing the number of passengers may contribute to reducing the risk of infection spreading.

The study was conducted by the Japanese research giant Riken Corporation, using the fastest supercomputers in the world, called Fujako, to simulate the spread of the virus in the air in different environments. The study concluded with several tips to reduce infection in public places.

The head of the research team, Makoto Tsubukura, said that opening windows on suburban trains can increase ventilation two or three times, reducing the concentration of microbes around the area.

But simulation models indicated that achieving high efficiency ventilation required distances between passengers. Suburban trains in Japan are very crowded.

Other tips include installing barriers in offices and classrooms, and enclosing hospital beds with curtains to the ceiling.

Brain damage wave

Today, Wednesday, scientists warned of a possible wave of brain damage resulting from infection with the Coronavirus, as new evidence indicated that Covid-19 could lead to severe complications in the nervous system, including inflammation, psychosis and delirium.

A study by researchers at the University of London described 43 cases of Covid-19 patients who experienced either temporary brain dysfunction, stroke, nerve damage, or other serious effects on the brain.

The research supports recent studies that also concluded that the disease can damage the brain.

"We'll see if we're going to see a large-scale pandemic of pandemic-related brain damage, which may be similar to the carotid encephalopathy pandemic in the 1920s and 1930s, after the influenza pandemic in 1930," said Michael Zandy. 1918 ".

Covid-19 is the disease caused by the emerging coronavirus, which is basically a respiratory disorder that affects the lungs, but neuroscientists and brain doctors say evidence shows that it has effects on the brain that cause concern.

In a study at the University of London, 9 patients suffering from encephalitis were diagnosed with a rare type called acute encephalitis, which is more prevalent in children and may be caused by a viral infection.