ADENOVIRUS TRANSMISSION

Adenovirus Transmission

Adenoviruses are very common viruses that can cause infections. There are over fifty subtypes of adenovirus. They most commonly cause upper respiratory tract infections, including the common cold, sore throats, tonsillitis, ear infections, and conjunctivitis. Another common adenoviral infection is pharyngoconjunctival fever (sore throat, red eyes, and a fever).
Virus transmission is the passing of a disease from an infected individual or group to a previously uninfected individual or group. The virus that causes disease may be transmitted from one person to another. Adenovirus can spread via direct contact, droplet transmission, respiratory droplet and fecal-oral transmission. Basically the adenovirus can be transmitted by:

1. Ingestion / oral fecal route
2. Respiration through respiratory route
3. Contact/Hand-to-eye transfer
4. Venereal

Ingestion / oral fecal route

Fecal–oral transmission occurs when the virions found in the stool of one person (or animal) are swallowed by another person. Transmission can spread directly through person that handling utensils that been contaminate with the virions or even contaminated food and beverages. Fecal material can be ingested through contamination of water supplies, poor hand washing between the bathroom and the kitchen, eating food contaminated by houseflies, or poor hygiene after handling diapers. Swimming pools and water parks can also be locations of fecal–oral transmission. If the water is not visibly contaminated and is adequately chlorinated, just getting the water in the mouth is usually enough to cause transmission of adenovirus; the risk is greatly increased by swallowing.

Respiratory droplets and body fluids

Adenoviruses are usually stable to chemical or physical agents and adverse pH conditions, allowing for prolonged survival outside of the body and water. Droplet transmission occurs when thee viruses travel on relatively large respiratory droplets that people sneeze, cough, drip, or exhale. These droplets are loaded with infectious particles.

They can be spread directly if people are close enough to each other. More often, though, fomites are involved. The droplets land on hands, toys, tables, mats, or other surfaces, where they sometimes remain infectious for hours. Hands that come in contact with these surfaces (doorknobs, telephones, pens, etc.) become contagious. When the infectious hand touches the nose or eyes, the infection is able to enter the new person.

Contact/Hand-to-eye transfer

Adenovirus is highly contagious, as indicated by the occurrence of multiple cases in situations of close contact, such as schools, hospitals, community centres and food court. The type of adenovirus that cause respiratory and intestinal infection basically spread from person to person through respiratory secretions (coughs or sneezes) or fecal contamination.

A person might also get the virus by holding hands or sharing utensils with an infected person. Indirect transmission can occur through exposure to the contaminated surfaces of furniture and other objects. The types of adenovirus causing conjunctivitis (acute inflammation of the conjunctiva) may be transmitted by sharing contaminated objects or by touch.

Sexual Transmission

This type of transmission occurs during sexual activity with another person. Transmission is either directly between surfaces in contact during intercourse (the usual route for bacterial infections and those infections causing sores) or from secretions such as semen or fluid which carry infectious agents that get into the partner's blood stream and leading to the virions transmission into the person body and starting the disease symptoms.