Network-based virus dynamic simulation: Evaluating the fomite disinfection effectiveness on SARS-CoV-2 transmission in indoor environment

Abstract

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is involved in aerosol particles and droplets excreted from a coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patient. Such aerosol particles or droplets including infectious virions can be attached on fomite, so fomite is not a negligible route for SARS-CoV-2 transmission within a community, especially in indoor environment. This necessarily evokes a need of fomite disinfection to remove virions, but the extent to which fomite disinfection breaks off virus transmission chain in indoor environment is still elusive. In this study, we evaluated the fomite disinfection effectiveness on COVID-19 case number using network analysis that reproduced the reported indoor outbreaks. In the established network, virus can move around not only human but also air and fomite while growing in human and decaying in air and on fomite, and infection success was determined based on the exposed virus amount and the equation of probability of infection. The simulation results have demonstrated that infectious virions on fomite should be kept less than a hundred to sufficiently reduce COVID-19 case, and every-hour disinfection was required to avoid stochastic increase in the infection case. This study gives us a practical disinfection manner for fomite to control SARS-CoV-2 transmission in indoor environment.