Emission, survival and transport of bacterial aerosols associated with infection risk in people with cystic fibrosis

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a progressive hereditary disease characterised by persistent pulmonary infections and lung function decline. Inhalation of airborne droplets containing microorganisms has been speculated as a possible transmission pathway for some of these pulmonary infections. Transmission of infectious aerosols is already a well-recognised route of infection for a number of diseases including Tuberculosis and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) which is currently causing a world pandemic. Understanding this route of transmission for pathogens associated with CF and how the indoor environment affects this process is essential for developing effective infection control guidelines to further minimise the risk of cross-infection between people with CF. Droplet size distributions of artificially generated aerosols of P. aeruginosa and M. abscessus were measured in a sealed constant air flow environment, the bioaerosol characterisation apparatus (BACA). Comparison between the two bacteria found M. abscessus decayed at a slower rate . Despite this several strains of both bacteria were found to easily survive in air for up to 4m without significant decay. A cross-sectional study measuring ... (continues)