The World Health Organization on Tuesday acknowledged for the first time that there was “evidence emerging” that the transmission of the coronavirus is airborne.
The UN agency’s admission came after 239 scientists wrote it an open letter claiming that the virus can be transmitted through the air.
“The possibility of airborne transmission in public settings – especially in very specific conditions, crowded, closed, poorly ventilated settings that have been described, cannot be ruled out,” Benedetta Allegranzi, WHO’s technical lead for infection prevention and control, said at a media briefing.
In an open letter to the WHO, scientists from 32 countries have claimed that the COVID-19 is airborne.
This claim contradicts previous evidence that suggested that it was transmitted from person to person through droplets from the nose or mouth, which are expelled when a person with the disease coughs, sneezes or speaks.
Earlier, WHO said the evidence that coronavirus is airborne is unconvincing.
