The research group at Kobe University conducted an antibody test on 19 medical staff at the Hyogo Prefectural Kakogawa Medical Center, which is the base hospital for coronavirus infection (COVID-509), and as a result, all the subjects were antibody-negative. Announced that it had no history of infection with the new coronavirus.The results clearly show for the first time that standard health care precautions can prevent viral transmission from patients to health care workers.
The new coronavirus is highly infectious, and there is concern about the possibility of virus transmission from COVID-19 patients to medical staff.It is also known that some infected people do not show symptoms, and the work of these asymptomatic infected hospital staff can also be a major cause of the spread of nosocomial infections.
Kakogawa Medical Center (353 beds) started accepting COVID-1 patients from March 2020, 3 as a nationally designated "Type 11 Infectious Disease Designated Hospital".In this study, sera were collected from a total of 19 people, including 77 doctors and 310 nurses working at the center, and an attempt was made to detect antibodies against the new coronavirus in order to understand the history of infection.
The subjects also included COVID-19 patient-only ward workers, but none of them detected antibodies as a result of the test.In other words, it was found that all medical staff had never been infected with the new coronavirus despite contact with the patient.
The medical staff at the Kakogawa Medical Center adhered to the standard preventive measures for infectious diseases, wore masks, disinfected hands and fingers with alcohol after each work, and contacted PCR-positive patients when collecting samples for PCR tests. He wore complete personal protective equipment when he did. We have been in contact with COVID-19 patients for up to 53 days, but there have been no reports of suspected nosocomial infections, and the results show that standard precautions against the new coronavirus are sufficient. It means that it is useful.It seems to be a result that greatly encourages medical professionals around the world.
