Possible Transmission of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in a Public Bath Center in Huai’an, Jiangsu Province, China

Abstract

Introduction: In December 2019, a novel pneumonia named coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), emerged in Wuhan, China, and has since spread to 25 countries. Current reports show that SARS-CoV-2 is closely related to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) and Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) and that it has a greater transmissibility than other coronaviruses. The confirmed transmission modes of SARS-CoV-2 include respiratory droplets and physical contact, and the incubation period for the virus is approximately 3 to 7 days, but it can be as long as 24 days.3 In this case series, we report a cluster-spreading event in Huai’an (700 km northeast of Wuhan) in Jiangsu Province, China, in which a patient with SARS-CoV-2 may have transmitted the virus to 8 other healthy individuals via bathing in a public bath center...