Sports balls as potential SARS-CoV-2 transmission vectors

Michel Pelisser; Joe Thompson; Dasha Majra; Sonia Youhanna; Justin Stebbing; Peter Davies

Public Health in Practice (Nov 2020)

Sports balls as potential SARS-CoV-2 transmission vectors

Michel Pelisser,
Joe Thompson,
Dasha Majra,
Sonia Youhanna,
Justin Stebbing,
Peter Davies

Affiliations

Michel Pelisser: Phoenix Hospital Group, 25 Harley Street, London, W1G 9QW, UK
Joe Thompson: Phoenix Hospital Group, 25 Harley Street, London, W1G 9QW, UK
Dasha Majra: The School of Medical Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
Sonia Youhanna: Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
Justin Stebbing: Department of Surgery and Cancer, Imperial College, London, UK; Corresponding author.
Peter Davies: Lansdowne Partners, 15 Davies Street, London, W1K 3AG, UK; Corresponding author.

Journal volume & issue: Vol. 1
p. 100029

Abstract

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Objects passed from one player to another have not been assessed for their ability to transmit severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). We found that the surface of sport balls, notably a football, tennis ball, golf ball, and cricket ball could not harbour inactivated virus when it was swabbed onto the surface, even for 30 s. However, when high concentrations of 5000 dC/mL and 10,000 dC/mL are directly pipetted onto the balls, it could be detected after for short time periods. Sports objects can only harbour inactivated SARS-CoV-2 under specific, directly transferred conditions, but wiping with a dry tissue or moist ‘baby wipe’ or dropping and rolling the balls removes all detectable viral traces. This has helpful implications to sporting events.

Published in Public Health in Practice

ISSN: 2666-5352 (Online)
Publisher: Elsevier
Country of publisher: United Kingdom
LCC subjects: Medicine: Public aspects of medicine
Website: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/public-health-in-practice

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