Singapore scientists study on influenza virus transmission

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An unusual study by scientists in Singapore is trying to establish how the influenza virus is transmitted through the air.

Using a special mirror and a high-speed camera, the scientists are recording the coughs and sneezes of volunteers to see how far air-flows - and the germs they carry - can travel.

This man is putting pepper up his nose. Why? So he can sneeze. He's a volunteer in a study being conducted by scientists in Singapore who want to establish how influenza viruses are transmitted through the air.

Key to their experiments are a specialized mirror and a high-speed camera, which together can record density variations in gases...ideal for watching a sneeze in action.

Virologist, Dr Julian Tang, says the experiments could lead to new information to help doctors deal more effectively with viral outbreaks like the swine flu pandemic of 2009.

Dr. Julian Tang, Singapore's National University Hospital, said, "Because during SARS and H5N1 and H1N1 pandemic, there was a lot of concern about coughing, sneezing, and whether we've wear masks, different types of masks, etc. But we realize that there's not basic knowledge, no basic information about how normal exhale flows actually have the potential to transmit infection."

According to the Center for Disease Control, influenza is primarily transmitted from person to person through sneezing or coughing, but little is known about how far a virus can travel through the air or whether it can be transmitted by other means such as laughing, crying or simply breathing.

Dr. Julian Tang, Singapore's National University Hospital, said, "What we are trying to get is just a general idea of, ok, a cough will travel so far for most people, but not beyond a certain point for most people. And that cough will have a certain amount of air for most people. So obviously we are not hundred per cent correct, but if you think about it, it's very hard to cough with no air coming out of your mouth. So you can determine limits and boundaries of your data interpretation and that's the same for all science."

The study won't stop until June 2012. Dr. Tang hopes by then he'll have enough data to answer some important questions. How much distance should separate patients in a hospital, who and how many passengers on an aircraft should be quarantined and can face masks be used more effectively.

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