The majority of patients infected with the Covid-19 virus contracted the disease from asymptomatic carriers, according findings in a recent study.
Researchers from Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine focused on the time it takes for a Covid-19 to infect a patient.
Based on mathematical models, they concluded that 79.7% of people that were hit by the virus in China were infected from an asymptomatic host.
The researchers also found that the average time a person carries the virus and can transmit it to another before the symptoms appear is 3.8 days earlier than expected.
The team also found that patients transmitted the disease at very early stages of their infection and not just before visible symptoms had emerged.
The findings suggested that isolating people just because they have symptoms is not enough to curtail the spread of the virus.
“Aggressive policy with testing, isolation of contacts and self-isolation to prevent transmission of asymptomatic are critical to fighting the virus,” they added.
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