How a person becomes a COVID-19 ‘super-spreader’

Research has shown that “super-spreaders” are causing as much as 80 per cent of all COVID-19 infections.

It’s led epidemiologists to suggest contact tracing needs to focus more on how a person got the virus than who they might have given it to.

Professor Michael Toole AM, Epidemiologist from the Burnet Institute, told 3AW Breakfast that “super-spreader” itself wasn’t an accurate term.

“It’s super-spreading events,” he explained.

So, what exactly sparks one of those?

“It needs a combination of somebody who was recently infected and has a lot of virus in their throat and nose, plus an indoor environment with poor ventilation, crowding,” Professor Toole explained.

He said a place where people were signing, such as church, or where people are yelling, such as nightclubs, were breeding grounds.

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