ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – Two University of New Mexico professors are responsible for some key research on COVID-19 transmission. In April of last year, Dr. Christopher Barlett swabbed the faces of physicians after they went into the rooms of COVID-19 patients.
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He also swabbed nearby phones, computer keyboards, and door handles. Dr. Ivy Hurwitz then tested the samples. While they were able to detect the virus, they weren’t able to culture it. “It’s just that when we tried to culture it we were not able to culture it. So that would likely mean that there was a very low concentration of virus on these surfaces or there was no virus,” Dr. Hurwitz said.
The CDC had found the risk of contracting COVID-19 through surfaces is low.