The reproduction number, R 0, is the average number of new infections caused by a typical case. Several factors contribute to the increase in R 0 - Duration of time someone is infectious Opportunities for transmission during this period (social interactions) Transmission probability during each opportunity (every time a person coughs or sneezes) Susceptibility of the person to that infection on the other end. If we multiply these values together, we get the R 0 . R 0 = duration x opportunities x transmission probability x susceptibility Let’s consider the example of Mr.
X, who has been infected for the last 5 days (Duration=5). He interacts with 6 people per day (Opportunities=6). There is an 8% chance of him infecting each of these contacts during an interaction (Transmission=0.08%), and everyone is susceptible (Susceptible=1) Thus, we get, 5 X 6 X 0.08 X 1= 2.4 This means there are…
