Use of face mask in COVID-19 pandemic-a review (original) (raw)
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Suggestions and Recommendations of Face Mask Usage during COVID 19 Pandemic
Bangladesh Journal of Infectious Diseases, 2020
Rate of spread of SARS-CoV-2 and number of relevant deaths continue to elevate as the time elapses since its first outbreak. With no readily available curative treatment neither any effective vaccine till now to prevent the infection, practicing personal protection measures remain the only effective way to stay protected from its attack. Those who are directly exposed to the care of any confirmed or suspected COVID-19 patient, including the health care workers and caregivers, have been advised by the World Health Organization (WHO) and Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to wear proper face masks or respirators following the guidelines. Transmission of corona virus occurs through respiratory droplets, close personal contact as well as touching stuff or surfaces polluted by the viral particles. However, several studies have already proven the effectiveness of using various face masks, according to the circumstances, in preventing the dissemination of COVID-19. Bangladesh ...
TURKISH JOURNAL OF MEDICAL SCIENCES, 2021
Introduction 1.1. Properties of face masks Face mask is a term used for a nonmedical/medical face mask or a respirator which is worn over the mouth and nose to prevent the splash and inhalation or release of infectious respiratory droplets, or for harmful substances. Types of face masks were demonstrated in Figure 1a as elastomeric respirators, in Figure 1b as N95 filtering facepiece, in Figure 1c as surgical mask, and in Figure 1d as cloth mask. Infectious respiratory droplets can be generated by breathing, speaking, coughing, or sneezing [1]. Masks can be used for source control or for the protection of the wearer. Source control is when it is used to prevent the spread of infectious respiratory particles like droplets or aerosols, and it is for the protection of others in the environment. Nonmedical face masks (e.g., cloth masks) used in community include many self-made forms or commercial masks, including masks made of disposable materials or textile which can be washed and reused. Because of not being standardized, they are not compatible for the use in healthcare facilities by healthcare workers (HCWs). The main three categories of masks are summarized in Table 1. Medical masks or surgical masks are loose-fitting disposable medical devices which can protect the users from large respiratory droplets or splashes produced by sneezing or coughing as physical barrier but not aerosols and airborne infection [2,3]. They vary in thickness and permeability. A medical face mask can also be used as source control to stop the spread of large respiratory droplets from the person wearing them [4]. Requirements for medical face masks, including the duration of use, are defined in the European Committee for Standardization's published standards. The EN 14683 standard, a European standard, describes the requirements and test methods for medical face masks. This standard has also been published Abstract: Face masks are devices worn over the mouth and nose to protect against splashes, infectious respiratory droplets, or aerosols generated during breathing or coughing according to their filtering capacity. Medical masks, respirators, or cloth masks have been used for source control and for the protection of the exposed. After the first case on March 11, 2020, in Turkey, National COVID-19 Scientific Advisory Board published various contents for the correct use of masks. Medical face masks have been used in healthcare settings for both source control and potential personal protection before the COVID-19 pandemic. Adverse events associated with using masks are very sparse and mainly associated with tight-fitting respirators or dermatitis due to prolonged use and should not be a reason for refusal to use. Studies suggest the use of masks mainly in the healthcare facilities but also in the community for source control of people who have respiratory symptoms of communicable diseases other than COVID-19. They are likely to be acceptable if recommended, particularly in more severe epidemics and pandemics. Metaanalysis, case control, cross sectional, cohort, retrospective, retrospective cross sectional, research, randomized controlled, and controlled comparison studies were reviewed on the protective effect of masks on COVID-19 with laboratory evidence. Optimum use of face masks with additional precautions has been found to be useful controlling the spread of the respiratory viruses such as SARS-CoV-2 in most of the studies and metaanalyses. As a conclusion, the recent evidence in COVID-19 pandemic is consistent with the previous studies which have shown association between face mask use and decreased risk of viral infections, and medical face mask use should be encouraged both for the community and healthcare facilities along with other infection control measures such as hand hygiene, during outbreaks when there is widespread community transmission.
Face masks, respiratory patients and COVID-19
European Respiratory Journal, 2020
Several countries have applied exemptions of respiratory patients on the compulsory use of face masks indoors and outdoors during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. It must be strongly stated that such exemption is not evidence-based, and it may carry increased risk of personal infection to the estimated 544.9 million people worldwide suffering a chronic respiratory disease [1]. Beyond hand hygiene and physical distancing, face masks are fundamental for personal and group protection to prevent the spread of infection both in patients and in their caretakers [2]. Ultimately, human behaviour is certainly the main determinant of the spread or containment of the disease. Considering that the virus spreads largely through the respiratory tract, experts are proposing that beyond protecting others, face masks help their wearers. In the new (although not fully demonstrated) COVID-19 inoculum theory, it is proposed that universal masking reduces the inoculum or dose of the virus for the wearer, leading to milder or asymptomatic infection [3, 4].
General Awareness Regarding Face Masks to Combat Covid-19: A Comprehensive Review
International Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences Review and Research, 2021
The pandemic, coronavirus disease (COVID-19) due to SARS-COV-2 also called severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, is directly related to bat SARS. Higher risk of spread can be caused due to prolonged exposure to a carrier person and shorter contacts with symptomatic individuals as briefer contacts with asymptomatic contacts are less inclined to transmission. The transmission can be either presymptomatic or asymptomatic. Wearing a face mask is becoming a requisite, in hospitals as well as community settings in this context as it can reduce the SARS Co-2 transmission rates. Masks has to be worn regularly and correctly to keep away from getting the virus. China recommended everyone to wear face masks and cloth masks to the ones less likely to spread or contract the infection when the current pandemic Covid-19 got outbursted. During this pandemic, when countries are facing shortage of resources, it is necessary to adopt and implement policies to ensure the balance of demand and supply to reduce the infection transmission rates. The irrational usage of surgical and the FFP masks by the general public has resulted into a shortage of their supply for the health care workers who need them the most, across the world. Awareness should be created among the public about the necessity of using face masks, selection of the mask, rational use in accordance with the situation, proper discarding of disposable masks, and other control measures that has to be kept in mind to prevent virus transmission. Face shields (Personal protective equipment-PPE) which are used by the healthcare providers in combination with face masks or respirators for eye protection, helps reduce transmission of the virus through respiratory droplets through the mucous membrane of the eyes offering a partial protection to the facial area.
Types of face coverings (masks) and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)
2021
The ongoing pandemic has been increasing slowly and steadily across the world. The SARS-CoV-2 spreads through droplet disseminated from infected persons via coughing and/or sneezing onto the face, nasopharyngeal, and oropharyngeal mucosa. In order to prevent the transmission of coronavirus disease, WHO and public health officials made policies, advised the health workers and public to wear face coverings (masks). The nature of masks depends upon the source, material, structure and particulate efficacies. The main objective of this study is to provide information about efficacies of different types of masks used during COVID-19 pandemic.
Effectiveness of Face Masks and Respiratory Aid Devices for Prophylaxis against COVID-19
Lahore Garrison University Journal of Life Sciences
The COVID-19 epidemic was spread rapidly around the world in 2019, and has greatly affected peoples general interaction, their work habits, dailylives and businesses. A personnel protection against the spread of COVID-19 is not only beneficial but is critically important especially for those working in medical fields. Current studies were performed to review the use and benefits of face mask and respiratory aid devices in order to control the spread of COVID-19. The respiratory aids devices (RADs) may be recommended as anti-COVID-19 masks rather than surgical masks. However, RADs having P and R series filters do not prevent the infiltration of coronavirus due to its smaller size as compared to the filtration capacity of filters. The N99 and N100 filters cause a difficulty inbreathing; it is difficult to wear such sort of respirators for a longer time. N95 respirators are recommended by medical professionals as they provide lesser(almost half) respiratory resistance. However, wearin...
Choosing a Proper Face Mask during COVID-19 Pandemic - Issues and Challenges
Academia Letters, 2021
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic using a face mask has become an essential feature of our daily life. During the pre-pandemic era, face masks were commonly used by scientists, engineers, medical professionals, health officials and workers, but currently, everyone is faced with the reality of wearing them. With a wide variety of face masks, having varied features, being available in the market, one is perplexed with selecting an apt mask for one's needs. Lately, researchers are working on the improvement of the protective and comfort properties of face masks. As facemasks are mostly made of non-biodegradable material, so a crucial issue is their proper disposal after use. The improper disposal of used facemasks is leading to an increase in environmental pollution. In this article, the essential features of some commonly available face masks, their effectiveness, and the criterion for the selection of a proper facemask are described. The latest developments, issues and challenges related to facemasks are also reported.
An Evidence review of Face Masks against Covid-19
International Journal for Research in Applied Science & Engineering Technology (IJRASET), 2021
The technology round the usage of mask with the aid of using the general public to hinder COVID-19 transmission is advancing rapidly. In this narrative overview, we expand an analytical framework to study masks utilisation, synthesising the applicable literature to tell more than one areas: populace impact, transmission characteristics, supply control, wearer protection, sociological considerations, and implementation considerations. A number one direction of transmission of COVID-19 is thru breathing debris, and it's far recognised to be transmissible from presymptomatic, paucisymptomatic, and asymptomatic people. Reducing ailment unfold calls for things: proscribing contacts of inflamed people thru bodily distancing and different measures and lowering the transmission chance according to touch. The preponderance of proof shows that masks sporting reduces transmissibility according to touch with the aid of using lowering transmission of inflamed breathing debris in each laboratory and medical contexts. Public masks sporting is handiest at lowering unfold of the virus whilst compliance is high. Given the modern shortages of clinical mask, we advise the adoption of public material masks sporting, as a powerful shape of supply control, along with present hygiene, distancing, and make contact with tracing strategies. Because many breathing debris turn out to be smaller because of evaporation, we advise growing awareness on a formerly unnoticed component of masks utilisation: masks sporting with the aid of using infectious people ("supply control") with blessings on the populace level, in preference to simplest masks sporting with the aid of using inclined people, which include fitness care workers, with awareness on person outcomes. We advise that public officers and governments strongly inspire the usage of extensive face mask in public, which include the usage of suitable regulation. Policy makers want pressing steering on the usage of mask with the aid of using the overall populace as a device in preventing extreme acute breathing syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the breathing virus that reasons COVID-19. Masks were encouraged as an ability device to address the COVID-19 pandemic for the reason that preliminary outbreak in China (1), even though utilisation all through the outbreak numerous with the aid of using time and location (2). Globally, nations are grappling with translating the proof of public masks sporting to their contexts. These guidelines are being evolved in a complicated decision-making environment, with a unique pandemic, speedy technology of recent research, and exponential boom in instances and deaths in lots of regions. There is presently an international scarcity of N95/FFP2 respirators and surgical mask to be used in hospitals. Simple material mask gift a practical answer to be used with the aid of using the general public. This has been supported with the aid of using maximum fitness bodies. We gift an interdisciplinary narrative overview of the literature at the position of face mask in lowering COVID-19 transmission with inside the community.
A rapid review of the use of face mask in preventing the spread of COVID-19
International Journal of Nursing Studies Advances, 2021
Elsevier has created a COVID-19 resource centre with free information in English and Mandarin on the novel coronavirus COVID-19. The COVID-19 resource centre is hosted on Elsevier Connect, the company's public news and information website. Elsevier hereby grants permission to make all its COVID-19-related research that is available on the COVID-19 resource centre-including this research content-immediately available in PubMed Central and other publicly funded repositories, such as the WHO COVID database with rights for unrestricted research re-use and analyses in any form or by any means with acknowledgement of the original source. These permissions are granted for free by Elsevier for as long as the COVID-19 resource centre remains active.
Different Type of Face Masks and Their Protection Against Covid-19
2021
Coronavirus diseases 2019 (COVID-19) have become a major pandemic and a gruesome burden worldwide. The infection is easily spread through respiratory droplets from infected individuals during coughing, sneezing or talking. People in their vicinity, within 1-meter distance, can get infected by breathing contaminated air and touching the contaminated surfaces or hands. WHO encouraged the use of facemasks in the community, together with regular hand washing with soap and social distancing to prevent the transmission of COVID-19. However, with the many types of facemasks available in the markets, it remains debatable as to which ones are the most effective in curbing the transmission of the disease. This paper reviews available literature on the types of face masks, their effectiveness in filtering droplets and the advantages and disadvantages of using disposable and fabric masks. As found out, the most superior mask is the N95 type, with a filtration rate of 95% of 0.3 micron particles...