Leonardo Setti, Fabrizio Passarini, Gianluigi de Gennaro, Alessia Di Gilio, Jolanda Palmisani, Paolo Buono, Gianna Fornari, Maria Grazia Perrone, Andrea Piazzalunga, Pierluigi Barbieri, Emanuele Rizzo, Alessandro Miani
Posted: March 3, 2020. Position paper
This article shows that there may be a very real link between the speed of transmission and lethality of COVID-19 and air pollution. The hypothesis that air pollution can act both as a vector of the infection and as a worsening factor of the health impact of the pandemic has also been raised in this article.
Quotes:
- “…This evidence leads the authors to the hypothesis of a direct relationship between the number of persons infected by COVID-19 and the PM10 concentration levels in specific areas of Italian territory, confirming previous findings of recently published studies regarding environmental factors involved in viral infection spread. The hypothesis of a direct relationship between COVID-19 cases and PM10 levels is strengthened by the evidence that concentration of COVID19 outbreaks notified in Pianura Padana was higher than in other parts of Italy” (bold added)
- “…In conclusion, the rapid COVID-19 infection spread observed in selected regions of Northern Italy is supposed be related to PM10 pollution due to airborne particles able to serve as carrier of pathogens…” (bold added)