At a downtown Baltimore hotel, University of Maryland researchers have quarantined an entire floor. Flu sufferers and healthy volunteers are playing cards, assembling a 4,000-piece puzzle and watching old movies.
Conversation is lively and six-foot social distancing is ignored.
The fun and games are a key part of a first-of-its-kind study to learn how the flu is transmitted, said Kristen Coleman, an assistant professor at the University of Maryland School of Public Health.
鈥淲e鈥檙e getting to the bottom of it,鈥� she said.
Researchers at Maryland鈥檚 School of Public Health are teaming up with doctors from the University鈥檚 School of Medicine to conduct the $15 million study funded by the National Institutes of Health.
Coleman said the healthy volunteers understand the risks 鈥� that they will most-likely come down with the flu.
鈥淭here鈥檚 a group of people that like to volunteer for research,鈥� she said. 鈥淔or the love of science.鈥�
Mathew Tan is one of the healthy participants. He decided to join the study, knowing that he could contract the body aches, chills and runny nose that comes with the flu.
鈥淒uring (the) COVID pandemic, I read a lot of articles about how viruses can spread inside a building,鈥� he said.聽鈥淚 thought that this would be a good opportunity to experience how studies are being conducted so I can make my own judgment.鈥�
At issue is a long-standing debate among scientists: Is the illness transmitted through large, spray-borne drops and touching contaminated surfaces, or through the inhalation of flu aerosols, which are tiny particles floating through the air, Coleman said.
University of Maryland researchers are leaning toward the aerosol hypothesis.
The future of fighting the flu
Coleman said a proven answer can impact how the flu is treated in the future.
鈥淚n order to have the correct policy in place for controlling transmission during a flu emergency, we really need to understand how it鈥檚 transmitted,鈥� Coleman said.聽鈥淪o, we鈥檙e really trying to gather that, so we鈥檙e better prepared for a pandemic.鈥�
Time is of the essence in the study because flu season could peak as soon as next month.
Although the study is currently underway, researchers are still looking for more healthy and sick participants.
Volunteers between the ages of 18 and 59 who live nearby and who have experienced flu symptoms for a day or two are needed the most. They will spend two to five days in the quarantined hotel, with all expenses paid for lodging and food, and get up to $1,900 to pass the flu on to healthy participants.
鈥淲e鈥檙e going to try to recruit as many sick volunteers as we can,鈥� Coleman told 草莓传媒. 鈥淥ne is great, but more than one is great. If any of the healthy volunteers do get infected, they can be a flu donor, if they鈥檇 like.鈥�
The study ends next month. Flu sufferers and healthy volunteers can enroll by calling: 410-706-8800.
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