Findings around the coronavirus pandemic that has already claimed more than 910,000 deaths worldwide, according to the Johns Hopkins University map, continue to emerge, and now a new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from the United States, found that adults who tested positive for the virus were about twice as likely to say they had dinner at a restaurant in the 14 days prior to infection, compared to those who tested negative.
The research pointed out that, in addition to dining at a restaurant, infected people were more likely to report going to a bar or coffee shop.
However, she detailed that this occurred only when the analysis was restricted to participants without prior close contact with people with COVID-19.
For the study, the researchers included data from 314 adults who were tested for the virus in July because of symptoms.
Of the total, 154 were positive and 160 negative.
These tests were administered at 11 different healthcare centers in California, Colorado, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, Utah, and Washington.
Along with other institutions, the CDC looked at how patients responded to questions about wearing masks and various activities.
This included knowing if they had recently dined at a restaurant or if they were also in a bar or gym, for example.
The result?
Forty-two percent of participants who tested positive reported having close contact with at least one person who was a carrier of the virus, compared with 14% of those who tested negative.
The experts highlighted that the majority of close contacts, 51% were family members.
The specialists also found that 71% of adults with COVID-19 reported that they always wore a face covering in public and, for those who tested negative, the percentage rose to 74%.
On the other hand, the study found that there were no significant differences between those who tested positive and negative when it came to going shopping or meeting fewer than 10 people in a home.
Nor in the cases of going to an office, a gym, a salon, using public transport or participating in religious activities.
However, the analysis has some limitations, as the scientific community assures that more research is needed to know if similar results would emerge in a larger group of patients or if there is any difference between eating inside the restaurant or outdoors.
"Reports of exposures in restaurants have been linked to air circulation. Direction, ventilation, and intensity of airflow could affect transmission of the virus, even if social distancing measures and the use of masks are implemented appropriately. according to current guidelines, "the researchers said.
For its part, the Association of Food and Drug Officials issued a response to the organization, in which they mentioned, for example, that the 10 participating states had very varied restrictions on restaurants.
In addition, control measures at the general level varied greatly in those communities and it was also unclear whether the people who reported going to restaurants and bars were in the community with the highest flow of people, which increased their risk of exposure.
Meanwhile, the CDC guidelines for restaurants and bars list dining options from the least risky to the most dangerous:
1. Lower Risk:
Service limited to delivery, home, take-out, and curbside pickup.
2. More risk:
dinners in places, limited to tables outside.
Reduced capacity to allow tables to be separated by at least two meters.
3. Even more risk:
dining on the spot with outdoor and indoor spaces enabled.
Reduced capacity to allow tables to be separated by at least two meters.
4. Higher risk:
dining on the spot with enabled outdoor and indoor spaces.
Not reduced capacity and tables not spaced at least two meters apart.
See also:
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How to exercise without risking coronavirus
COVID-19 spreads through air conditioning and infects 9 people
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