Over the past 1.5 months, many bachelors and bachelors in Israel and around the world have avoided dating for fear of becoming infected with coronavirus. But a new study, conducted by a group of scientists from different parts of the world, brought some good news at once, the main one being that the virus is not sexually transmitted.
The study, published by the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, is a joint project of scientists from the Chinese city of Wuhan, the medical center of the University of Utah, Columbia University and Cornell University. Together, they analyzed semen samples from 34 Chinese men who had a coronavirus infection, but none of them showed traces of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.
Scientists became interested in this issue knowing that previously known infectious diseases such as, for example, Ebola or Zika could indeed be transmitted sexually. However, fortunately, their fears were not confirmed. And although they recognize that the number of samples they examined is insufficient to state with full confidence that the new coronavirus is not sexually transmitted, scientists say that the chances of infection in this way are extremely unlikely.
“The fact that even in three dozen cases the virus that causes COVID-19 is not detected in the testes or sperm can be an important discovery,” study co-author James M. Hotling told Yahoo Life in an interview with Yahoo. “If such a virus were transmitted sexually, it would have serious consequences both for the prevention of diseases and for the long-term reproductive health of a person.”
Dr. Hotling also noted that the researchers did not aim to convince Americans to have sex as soon as possible. Indeed, despite the fact that sperm was safe, we all know that COVID-19 is distributed through saliva, and therefore through kisses. We also know that the symptoms of this disease may not appear immediately, but only after a few days. That is, meeting on pandemic days can still be dangerous in some cases.
Discussions on the subject have also been published on the Harvard University website blog: “People should not be completely deprived of sex during quarantine. And the fact that the virus can be transmitted through saliva should not provoke you to isolate yourself from your spouse. If you are both healthy and feeling good, on the street and in public places you observe social distance and both were not in contact with someone with COVID-19, then touching, hugging, kissing and having sex will be completely safe for both of you. In the same way as sleeping together in the same bed. “
It is important to emphasize that scientists recognize another important minus of their work, because all 34 men studied by them were patients with mild to moderate coronavirus infection. “It is possible that a person with a COVID-19 patient who is in critical condition may have a higher viral load, as a result of which his sperm may also be infected,” the scientists said. Research with such patients has not yet been conducted, which means that in order to reach a final conclusion, they need to continue their work.
Healthy walla
Image: Crawford Jolly on Unsplash
–
