# Airborne SARS-CoV-2 RNA detected during deliveries with unmasked patients

## TL;DR

Air samples in delivery rooms showed SARS-CoV-2 RNA, suggesting some patients may spread the virus through the air during childbirth.

## Contribution

The study identifies airborne SARS-CoV-2 RNA in delivery rooms during childbirth, highlighting potential transmission risks.

## Key findings

- Six of 28 air samples in delivery rooms tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 RNA.
- Five positive samples came from the same delivery event.
- No SARS-CoV-2 RNA was detected in anterooms or corridors.

## Abstract

Healthcare workers in obstetric clinics may be exposed to airborne SARS-CoV-2 when treating patients with COVID-19.

In this study, performed during the midst of the pandemic, air samples were collected in delivery rooms during childbirth and analysed for SARS-CoV-2 RNA content.

Six of 28 samples collected inside delivery rooms were positive for SARS-CoV-2, but none in anterooms or corridors. Five of the six positive samples were from the same occasion.

This indicates that some patients could be major sources of exhaled virus, although the individual variation is large, and it is thus difficult to predict the risk of infection.