AUTHOR=Tan Fen , Wang Kaige , Liu Jiasheng , Liu Dan , Luo Jianfei , Zhou Rui TITLE=Viral Transmission and Clinical Features in Asymptomatic Carriers of SARS-CoV-2 in Wuhan, China JOURNAL=Frontiers in Medicine VOLUME=7 YEAR=2020 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/medicine/articles/10.3389/fmed.2020.00547 DOI=10.3389/fmed.2020.00547 ISSN=2296-858X ABSTRACT=

We report the clinical characteristics, viral shedding duration, and contact tracing for asymptomatic carriers of SARS-CoV-2 in Wuhan, China. The asymptomatic carriers were relatively young (median age: 34.5 years). Chest computed tomography showed no abnormalities. The nasopharyngeal swab was an optimum specimen for RNA testing. The median viral shedding duration was 11.5 days. Notably, 2 months of viral shedding duration were reported in two nurses, which was much longer than previously reported or than usually thought. The transmissibility of SARS-CoV-2 by asymptomatic carriers during the studied period in Wuhan appeared to be weak. Only one patient (1/12) was found to have transmitted the virus to another person. Early asymptomatic carrier detection, isolation, and contact tracing could be useful to mitigate the spread of the disease.