Can the coronavirus survive on surfaces?
The survival time depends on a number of factors, including the type of surface, temperature, relative humidity and specific strain of the virus.
- Introduction and background
In late 2019, an acute respiratory disease emerged, known as novel coronavirus disease 2019
(COVID-19). The pathogen responsible for COVID-19 is severe acute respiratory syndrome
coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2, also referred to as the COVID-19 virus), a member of the coronavirus
family. In response to the growing spread of COVID-19, WHO has published a number of technical
guidance documents on specific topics, including infection prevention and control (IPC). These
documents are available at https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus2019/technical-guidance/infection-prevention-and-control.
This technical brief supplement the IPC documents by referencing and summarizing the
WHO guidance on water, sanitation and health care waste that is relevant to viruses, including
coronaviruses. This technical brief is written, in particular, for water and sanitation practitioners and
providers. It is also for health care providers who want to know more about water, sanitation and
hygiene (WASH) risks and practices.
The provision of safe water, sanitation and hygienic conditions is essential to protecting human
health during all infectious disease outbreaks, including the COVID-19 outbreak. Ensuring good and
consistently applied WASH and waste management practices in communities, homes, schools,
marketplaces and health care facilities will further help to prevent human-to-human transmission of
the COVID-19 virus.
