Post by Nadica (She/Her) on Jul 2, 2024 21:02:59 GMT
Technical Document for Public Use of Medical Masks and Cloth Masks - Published April 24, 2020
another technical document some may find useful, this one focusing more on mask fit
Executive Summary
During the COVID-19 pandemic, universal mask-wearing in public protects others and will
provide some protection to the wearer. Face masks are used across the world to reduce the
transmission of respiratory viruses.
Masks protect the greater community and protect the individual from infection:
1) For people near the wearer: When covering both the nose and mouth, masks can
reduce emission of virus-containing respiratory droplets and aerosols from people who
have been infected. SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) can be transmitted
from people who do not have symptoms or do not feel sick, so face-mask wearing is
now widely recommended or mandatory in public.
2) For the wearer: Data support that masks reduce the number of viral particles that are
breathed in through the mouth and nose. For the inhaled air to be effectively filtered, the
type of mask and how it is worn are critical.
This document reviews basic features of masks that create a droplet barrier and are correlated
with higher filtration of inhaled air, to provide protection from viral transmission. In most cases,
any mask or face covering is better than nothing at all. However, the level of protection
provided to the wearer, and others, varies depending on several variables including the type of
mask and how it is worn.
1. Overview
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends the use of face
masks to reduce transmission of COVID-19 in public, especially in areas where significant
community transmission may occur, such as grocery stores and pharmacies (CDC, 2020). In
combination with maintaining a 6 ft. distance from other people, wearing a face mask further
reduces risk of transmission. Albeit only a correlative connection, in countries where
transmission has been effectively mitigated (e.g. Taiwan, Hong Kong, Korea, and parts of
China outside of Hubei), face mask use has been widely practiced in public from an early stage
in the pandemic (e.g. National Health Commission of the People’s Republic of China, 2020).
Here, we briefly describe the differences in protection from COVID-19 that are provided
by N95 filtering facepiece respirators (FFRs), medical masks (also referred to as surgical or
procedure masks), and cloth masks. N95 FFRs provide the highest protection from being
infected but, due to the supply chain shortage, the CDC recommends that these be reserved
for health care workers. For health care workers, we have provided detailed information about
N95 FFRs on other www.n95decon.org pages. Here, we review data on the features of medical
masks and cloth masks that reduce viral transmission from a sick person or provide protection
from breathing in of viral particles by a well person. Given the wide variety of medical and cloth
masks available, we can only provide a broad comparison here.
another technical document some may find useful, this one focusing more on mask fit
Executive Summary
During the COVID-19 pandemic, universal mask-wearing in public protects others and will
provide some protection to the wearer. Face masks are used across the world to reduce the
transmission of respiratory viruses.
Masks protect the greater community and protect the individual from infection:
1) For people near the wearer: When covering both the nose and mouth, masks can
reduce emission of virus-containing respiratory droplets and aerosols from people who
have been infected. SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) can be transmitted
from people who do not have symptoms or do not feel sick, so face-mask wearing is
now widely recommended or mandatory in public.
2) For the wearer: Data support that masks reduce the number of viral particles that are
breathed in through the mouth and nose. For the inhaled air to be effectively filtered, the
type of mask and how it is worn are critical.
This document reviews basic features of masks that create a droplet barrier and are correlated
with higher filtration of inhaled air, to provide protection from viral transmission. In most cases,
any mask or face covering is better than nothing at all. However, the level of protection
provided to the wearer, and others, varies depending on several variables including the type of
mask and how it is worn.
1. Overview
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends the use of face
masks to reduce transmission of COVID-19 in public, especially in areas where significant
community transmission may occur, such as grocery stores and pharmacies (CDC, 2020). In
combination with maintaining a 6 ft. distance from other people, wearing a face mask further
reduces risk of transmission. Albeit only a correlative connection, in countries where
transmission has been effectively mitigated (e.g. Taiwan, Hong Kong, Korea, and parts of
China outside of Hubei), face mask use has been widely practiced in public from an early stage
in the pandemic (e.g. National Health Commission of the People’s Republic of China, 2020).
Here, we briefly describe the differences in protection from COVID-19 that are provided
by N95 filtering facepiece respirators (FFRs), medical masks (also referred to as surgical or
procedure masks), and cloth masks. N95 FFRs provide the highest protection from being
infected but, due to the supply chain shortage, the CDC recommends that these be reserved
for health care workers. For health care workers, we have provided detailed information about
N95 FFRs on other www.n95decon.org pages. Here, we review data on the features of medical
masks and cloth masks that reduce viral transmission from a sick person or provide protection
from breathing in of viral particles by a well person. Given the wide variety of medical and cloth
masks available, we can only provide a broad comparison here.