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Scientists from the hongkongské university found that the new type of coronavirus can remain on the outer side of a mask for up to a week.
They thus demonstrated how important it is not to touch masks from the outside and to boil them immediately after coming home.
As part of the study they also looked at how long the coronavirus persists on other materials.
The medical journal The Lancet published a study that confirmed the new type of coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 can be very stable in suitable environments. The researchers behind the study also warned that the presence of the virus was detected by laboratory instruments and therefore does not necessarily indicate the possibility of infection through accidental contact.
The coronavirus persists for different lengths of time on different types of surfaces.
It disappears from paper tissues after just under three hours, glass and banknotes are contaminated for about 4 days, and for example on plastics or stainless steel it was present for between 4 and 7 days.
A big shock for the scientists was the fact that the new type of coronavirus can survive on a mask for even a week. Virologist Malik Peiris told The South China Morning Post that this finding only proves how important it is not to touch the outer side of a mask.
Shopping a day ahead
If you want to be sure you won’t get infected from goods you brought home from the store, scientists say you can leave your shopping in a bag for a day just to be safe. They stated, however, that commonly used disinfectants are sufficient to destroy the coronavirus and that the most important thing is to maintain hygiene.
