The studies finding presence of coronavirus in sewage water had further added to the tensions across the world, which was already hit hard by the deadly virus.
In a big relief, a new study has found that the fecal-oral transmission does not appear to happen. But it has found that the virus persists longer in the fecal samples than in the pharyngeal samples.
According to the study, fecal samples turned out positive for the virus in 65% of the patients and remained positive for 17 days. All of them lived in different houses and had good personal hygiene before they became sick. This ruled out the fecal-oral route and rather indicated droplet or direct contact transmission.
The researchers said they did not identify evidence for fecal-oral transmission of COVID-19. However, they say, since fecal samples remain positive for the virus for a significantly longer time compared to upper respiratory samples, disinfection and isolation should be carried out meticulously throughout the recovery period of such patients to avoid contamination of the surroundings.
