Recent studies on the Coronavirus have shown that the number of asymptomatic people or those that do not show symptoms of the SARS-CoV-2 virus has increased. In fact, 25% or 1 out of 4 people surrounding you may have the viral disease without you knowing it.
Due to this, health experts from the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) expressed their conflicting beliefs with what the World Health Organization (WHO) initially said against wearing face masks if you're feeling healthy. The CDC doctors now believe that everyone should now wear protection since the number of asymptomatic patients is no longer as low as initially thought.
25% of people surrounding you may have Coronavirus without symptoms
According to a recent report in the New York Times, Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the CDC, now wants to "critically re-review" their statement saying that people without any symptoms of Coronavirus should not wear a mask.
Originally written on their website, CDC promotes none usage of facemasks to all people experiencing no symptoms of the disease.
"You do not need to wear a facemask unless you are caring for someone who is sick (and they are not able to wear a facemask). Facemasks may be in short supply, and they should be saved for caregivers," as written on their website.
However, this might change now. Based on their research, 25% of people around the world do not show any symptoms of the disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus. If this is the case, wearing masks should now be a necessity for all people, according to the CDC director.
For example, a 26-year old man from Guangdong China had close contact with a person from Wuhan who was infected with the virus. He did not show any symptoms since their meeting. The man then finished the recommended quarantine period.
What he doesn't know is that on Day 7, the virus had already developed in his nose and throat, similar to other persons with more pronounced symptoms.
What does asymptomatic mean?
Dr. Jeffrey Shaman, an infectious diseases expert at Columbia University, also explained that an asymptomatic person is still unclear for most people. He was also not satisfied with how health experts define its real meaning.
"There's no standard definition for it, and you could say to yourself, Well, that's kind of ridiculous: You either have symptoms, or you don't," he said.
However, he understands that the CDC now wants to promote wide usage of face masks.
"The bottom line is that there are people out there shedding the virus who don't know that they're infected," he added.
Health experts also think that Coronavirus does not spread on droplets alone, but in aerosols
Again, as explained by WHO and the CDC, Coronavirus can spread once your body inhales droplets of the virus orif you come in contact with a surface that has a droplet of a Coronavirus and proceed to touch to eyes, nose, mouth, or face. Not all experts believe this.
"I think increasing evidence suggests the virus is spread not just through droplets but through aerosols," said Dr. Gerardo Chowell, an epidemiologist at Georgia State University. "It would make a lot of sense to encourage at the very least face mask use in enclosed spaces, including supermarkets."
The WHO and the CDC still have no further comment on this matter.
