The relative transmissibility of asymptomatic COVID-19 infections among close contacts

Daihai He; Shi Zhao; Qianying Lin; Zian Zhuang; Peihua Cao; Maggie H Wang; Lin Yang

doi:10.1016/j.ijid.2020.04.034

The relative transmissibility of asymptomatic COVID-19 infections among close contacts

Int J Infect Dis. 2020 May:94:145-147. doi: 10.1016/j.ijid.2020.04.034. Epub 2020 Apr 18.

Authors

Daihai He¹, Shi Zhao², Qianying Lin³, Zian Zhuang⁴, Peihua Cao⁵, Maggie H Wang², Lin Yang⁶

Affiliations

¹ Department of Applied Mathematics, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China. Electronic address: daihai.he@polyu.edu.hk.
² JC School of Public Health and Primary Care, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China; Shenzhen Research Institute of Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, China.
³ Michigan Institute for Data Science, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
⁴ Department of Applied Mathematics, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China.
⁵ Clinical Research Center, Zhujiang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
⁶ School of Nursing, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China.

Abstract

Asymptomatic transmission of the coronavirus disease 2019 is an important topic. A recent study in China showed that transmissibility of the asymptomatic cases is comparable to that of symptomatic cases. Here, we discuss that the conclusion may depend on how we interpret the data. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time the relative transmissibility of asymptomatic COVID-19 infections is quantified.

Keywords: Asymptomatic infection; COVID-19; Relative transmissibility.

MeSH terms

Asymptomatic Infections*
Betacoronavirus*
COVID-19
China
Coronavirus Infections / transmission*
Humans
Pandemics
Pneumonia, Viral / transmission*
SARS-CoV-2