Less Infectious Particles from Children’s Lungs: Study

The current Omicron variant of COVID-19 is localized more to the upper respiratory tract and this is why even filtering face masks are a great protection.

The concentration of small particles below five microns was found to increase with age and is less in kids. Adults are much more likely to trigger spreading if the infection is only in the lower respiratory tract.

Larger particles that originate in the throat are spread by children and adults to the same extent, according to the study. The researchers did not find a correlation between the concentration of exhaled particles and the person's gender, weight, fitness or smoking habits.

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‘In the lung, mostly small particles with less than five microns – that is five thousandths of a millimeter – are produced, also known as PM5. In contrast, bigger particles are produced in the upper respiratory tract. As the measurements showed, children exhale far less smaller particles than adults.’

Vocalization Activities Increase Small Particle Concentration

In this comprehensive study, the researchers recorded data from 132 healthy volunteers. The study also included children and adolescents between 5 and 18 years about which very little data were available. They used various instruments installed in a clean room to measure the full range of particle sizes exhaled: from a tenth of a micrometer to a quarter of a millimeter. The participants performed different vocalization activities such as singing, speaking and shouting for 20 minutes in total. “Vocalization and age are shown to be independent risk factors for particle production,” reports Prof. Simone Scheithauer from the Department of Infection Control and Infectious diseases at the UMG.

Respiratory Diseases - Diseases of the Human Respiratory System
Respiratory diseases affect any part of the respiratory system. Some of the lung diseases like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease can lead to respiratory failure.

The Volume of the Exhaled Particles Determines Potential Infection Risk

Although human drops and aerosols contain mostly small particles, larger particles constitute the major part of the total volume that can contain pathogens. “If the pathogen mainly resides in the upper respiratory tract, the large particles are by far the main transmitter of the disease”, explains Eberhard Bodenschatz, director at the MPI-DS. “It is thus important to consider the localization of the infectious particle in the respiratory tract to decide on appropriate protection”, he continues.

How Well do you Know Your Lungs
The lungs are a pair of respiratory organs located on either side of the chest. They are the main part of the respiratory system that helps in removing waste gases like carbon dioxide from our body and supplying oxygen to the body.

Protective Measures Depend on the Localization of the Pathogen

In contrast, infectious diseases that reside mainly in the lungs will primarily be transmitted via small particles. Since their production increases with age, children are less likely to transmit such diseases than adults, according to the study. To prevent airborne transmission of lung diseases, wearing of well-fitted and high-efficiency facial masks can thus be an effective measure to avoid disease transmission, especially for adults.

Source-Eurekalert

The Lungs
The lungs are our organs of respiration. It is within these, that exchange of gases takes place.