Can the coronavirus disease spread through feces?

[leeshuhui]

The virus that causes COVID-19 has been found in the feces of some patients diagnosed with COVID-19. However, it is unclear whether the virus found in feces may be capable of causing COVID-19. There has not been any confirmed report of the virus spreading from feces to a person.What do you think?

Sounds like BS to me

Well, as well don't ingest people's poo I don't think that it's much of a worry.
If we did, then yes, we could probably catch the virus from it.

I will wait for the scientists to do more research, though I believe it's an airborne disease.
No-one on here will be qualified to answer your question, unless Chris Whitty is an MNer.

It's probably possible but since we don't share faeces I think unlikely.

well they have been testing the sewers for the virus.

I think the concensus is that it is theoretically possible but very low risk.
www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/09/can-you-catch-covid-19-your-neighbor-s-toilet

I think you should try to avoid eating faeces in all situations.

Small fecal particles are known to be infectious soon after they are expelled, it probably dies off quite quickly though.

Well we tend to treat feces as a disease spreading agent already so I am not sure what changes if it can spread covid as well?

I'm sure covid would be the last of your worries if you started licking shit.

I imagine it could, shit is fairly well known to spread disease. That’s why we tend not to get too close to it and wash our hands if we do.

(From an infectious perspective I mean, it's still detectable in the sewage tests.)

its theoretically possible, but I don't think there have been any known cases (the 'bathroom to bathroom' one in the flats also had a layout which meant tracer gas released in one was detected in others in the same vertical stack). So they can't rule out faecal aerosol transmission totally, but normally there is no route for that, and the study did not examine for presence of sputum. 'Culprit' may have been a dried out water trap.

Well they have been testing the sewers

There's a difference between finding the virus (useful for surveillance) and finding an infective dose. In separate studies, researchers found about 50% of symptomatic covid patients had detectable virus in stool samples and/or anal swabs (studies all finding similar levels) but most did not test whether it was at levels capable of transmission (source: peer-reviewed metanalysis republished on CDC website)

Love everyone saying well just avoid and you will be fine. How do you think norovirus and other stomach bugs spread? People are disgusting and don't wash their hands then make your food or whatever and you end up ill.

I honestly don't know if covid can spread that way though although Im sure somone somewhere will have done a study.

Norovirus also has fairly recently proven airborne spread, just washing hands isn't enough.

Particulates in the air from flushing toilets is a decent area of concern, as well as rigorous handwashing. Beyond that, it's much more likely that people will be infected by a person than by their leave-behinds.

If someone’s covid infected toilet flush particulates are still hanging in the air in the cubicle isn’t it also likely that their covidy aerosols from breathing are doing the same?

The original SARS virus was found to have transmitted through the the sewage system in a block of flats so catching covid from aerosolised particles (caused by flushing)in public toilets is definitely a possibility.

In my native country's gov corona guidance, it says always flush the toilet with lid closed , so I assume it does. Also I'm not 100% sure, but heard on the news that they are analizing sewage water for virus to predict the spread or something.

My adult son sprays the toilet with bleach every time he uses it, he must have read about it online somewhere. Luckily he’s at work during the day.

We’re told it spreads air borne, but since the pandemic began, I change bathroom towels every day and clean after any guests has used the bathroom. It doesn’t hurt to be careful.

I thought that was one of the reasons given for closing public toilets, the particles floating in the air after flushing. Not sure if it was ever proven though.

@Whichjab

I'm sure covid would be the last of your worries if you started licking shit.

Shut the lid before you flush and don't leave toothbrushes out uncovered is all I'll say. As pp said, that's how SARS spread at the time in some cases.

@Whichjab

I'm sure covid would be the last of your worries if you started licking shit.

WHO suggest that both faecal-oral transmission and aerosolised particles from toilet flushing/plumbing are low risk but recommend flushing with the lid closed. I would expect it is possible as viable virus has been found in faeces and there has been one case where faecal aerosol transmission seems to have be probable. I would expect it is uncommon, like fomite transmission.

www.infectiousdiseaseadvisor.com/home/topics/covid19/fecal-aerosol-transmission-sars-cov-2/

The risk might be slightly higher if the person has D&V, as seems to be more common with the delta variant. I would definitely be making sure the bathroom was well ventilated, closing the lid and using extra bleach if someone in my household had COVID. I wouldn't be too concerned otherwise.

I think way back in the beginning of 2020 there was some talk of this being a possibility in China, possibly Hong Kong where they thought it may have spread through an apartment block via the sewerage system.

@Usual2usual

Love everyone saying well just avoid and you will be fine. How do you think norovirus and other stomach bugs spread? People are disgusting and don't wash their hands then make your food or whatever and you end up ill.

I honestly don't know if covid can spread that way though although Im sure somone somewhere will have done a study.

I don’t think anyone is saying ‘avoid it and you’ll be fine’, just that many diseases spread through faeces so just take your normal precautions, such as thorough hand washing. What is the alternative? We can’t ban people from shitting.