Direct transmission requires contact with another person whereas indirect transmission does not.

• A. Direct transmission requires contact with another person whereas indirect transmission does not.
• B. Direct transmission does not require contact whereas indirect does.
• C. Both require contact with a person.
• D. Neither requires contact.

Answer: (A)

Direct transmission occurs when pathogens move from an infected person to someone else through close contact or droplets from the respiratory tract, so physical contact with the source is involved. Indirect transmission happens via a vehicle or intermediary—like a contaminated surface, food, water, or a vector—so the pathogen reaches the new host without direct person-to-person contact. That makes the statement accurate: direct transmission requires contact with another person, while indirect does not. The other ideas would misstate the difference by suggesting direct transmission doesn’t involve contact, or that both or neither require contact.