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Should face masks be worn to contain the spread of COVID-19 in the postlockdown phase?
- Source :
- Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
- Publication Year :
- 2021
- Publisher :
- Oxford University Press, 2021.
-
Abstract
- Background In East Asia, face masks are commonly worn to reduce viral spread. In Euope and North America, however, their use has been stigmatised for a long time, although this view has radically changed during the ongoing severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic. Notwithstanding this, it is still unclear whether face masks worn by COVID-19 carriers may indeed prevent viral transmission and environmental contamination. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of surgical face masks in filtering SARS-CoV-2. Methods Four male patients with COVID-19 were recruited for the study. Two patients wore a surgical mask for 5 h, while two others did not. The spread of the virus in the environment was evaluated through the approved Allplex 2019-nCoV assay. Results In the room with the two patients without surgical masks, the swab performed on the headboard and sides of the beds was positive for SARS-CoV-2 contamination. In the other room, where two patients were wearing surgical masks, all of the swabs obtained after 5 h tested negative. Conclusions The results of the current study add to the growing body of literature supporting the use of face masks as a measure to contain the spread of SARS-CoV-2 by retaining potentially contagious droplets that can infect other people and/or contaminate surfaces. Based on the current evidence, face masks should therefore be considered a useful and low-cost device in addition to social distancing and hand hygiene during the postlockdown phase.
- Subjects :
- Male
Settore M-PSI/02 - PSICOBIOLOGIA E PSICOLOGIA FISIOLOGICA
SARS-CoV-2
Physical Distancing
Masks
COVID-19
Middle Aged
Settore MED/17 - MALATTIE INFETTIVE
AcademicSubjects/MED00290
non-pharmacological interventions
Social Isolation
viral spread
Communicable Disease Control
Humans
Original Article
AcademicSubjects/MED00860
Hand Hygiene
health care organisation
Pandemics
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
- Accession number :
- edsair.pmid.dedup....e0405febaa4324f8fa6aaf5f39e42289