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Pertussis spreads by sprays produced when an infected person coughs, sneezes or talks over a few feet. How is this mode classified?
AIndirect, as airborne transmission
BDirect, as droplet spread
CIndirect, as vehicleborne spread
DDirect, as contact with skin
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: B. Direct, as droplet spread
1. Direct transmission covers direct contact and droplet spread; indirect covers airborne, vehicleborne and vectorborne spread.
2. Droplets from coughing or sneezing travel only a few feet and then fall to the ground.
3. Because the spray reaches the new host directly, droplet spread counts as direct transmission.
4. Airborne transmission involves dust or droplet nuclei that stay suspended, which is a different and indirect category.
5. Contact with skin is direct but does not describe a spray produced by coughing.
_Source: CDC Principles of Epidemiology in Public Health Practice, 3rd Edition, section Modes of Transmission_
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