Should we still carry hand sanitizer to use every time we touch a doorknob or anything in a public place? At the beginning of the pandemic, there was a lot of concern about contracting COVID-19 touching surfaces of everyday life: the pole of a subway car, the doorknob, an Amazon package or the pen used to sign a receipt.
Since then, science has shown that the virus that causes COVID spreads mainly through airborne particles emitted by infected people in close proximity.
That is why measures such as the use of face mask and social distancing (in addition to vaccines) are key to controlling the pandemic. “The risk of contracting COVID-19 from touching high-touch community surfaces is essentially negligible,” says Emanuel Goldman, a microbiologist at Rutgers University. Goldman says that while studies have shown that some viral genetic material can be found on surfaces, it is generally in a degraded state that cannot cause infection.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that the chance of contracting COVID-19 from a surface is less than 1 in 10,000.
“This is a very conservative estimate,” says Goldman. “In my opinion, the chances are much less than that.”
Linsey Marr, an aerial transmission expert at Virginia Tech, says wearing a mask indoors is mmuch more important. Recent evidence suggests that high-performance masks like the N95 or K95 are better at preventing the spread of the virus.
Hygiene theater
So why do airlines, restaurants, transit authorities, and businesses brag about how often they disinfect their surfaces? We can attribute it to a bit of hygiene theater, intended perhaps more for tranquility than any real preventive effect. That said, it’s never a bad idea to wash your hands.
“If you’ve been in public and touched a lot of surfaces, like when riding public transportation or using the bathroom, then it’s a good idea to wash your hands… which you should do anyway after using the bathroom,” says Marr.
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