Experimental measurement of respiratory particles dispersed by wind instruments and analysis of the associated risk of infection transmission

TL;DR

This study measures respiratory particles from wind instrument playing, finding lower transmission risk than singing, and emphasizes the importance of masks for safety against airborne diseases like COVID-19.

Contribution

It provides detailed particle size and concentration data for wind instrument playing and evaluates the effectiveness of filters and masks in reducing infection risk.

Findings

Wind instruments filter out particles >10 μm, lowering transmission risk.

Playing wind instruments produces fewer respiratory particles than singing or speaking.

Proper masks significantly reduce airborne transmission risk in musical settings.

Abstract

Activities such as singing or playing a wind instrument release respiratory particles into the air that may contain pathogens and thus pose a risk for infection transmission. Here we report measurements of the size distribution, number, and volume concentration of exhaled particles from 31 healthy musicians playing 20 types of wind instruments using aerosol spectrometry and in-line holography in a strictly controlled cleanroom environment. We find that playing wind instruments carries a lower risk of airborne disease transmission than speaking or singing. We attribute this to the fact that the resonators of wind instruments act as filters for particles >10 $\mu$m in diameter. We have also measured the size-dependent filtering properties of different types of filters that can be used as instrument masks. Based on these measurements, we calculated the risk of airborne transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in different near- and far-field scenarios with and without masking and/or distancing. We conclude that in all cases where there is a possibility that the musician is infectious, the only safe measure to prevent airborne transmission of the disease is the use of well-fitting and well-filtering masks for the instrument and the susceptible person.