- Feb 28, 2009
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Guidelines posted this week by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend that people avoid close contact and crowded conditions rather than relying on face masks for protection from infection during a flu pandemic. But they also suggest that face masks might reduce risk if it’s impossible to avoid crowds or people who are already infected.
"Very little is known about the benefits of wearing face masks or respirators to help control the spread of pandemic flu," the CDC notes.
The trouble, said Schaffner, is that whether or not face masks protect against viruses such as the swine flu depends greatly on what kind of masks people use and how well they wear them.
There are basically two kinds of face masks: loose-fitting surgical or medical masks made of soft, thin cloth that sell for pennies apiece, and form-fitting masks, also known as N-95 respirators, made of spun plastic fibers that filter small particles. They sell for a few dollars each.
The surgical masks are generally used to protect other people from the cough spray of the wearer, Schaffner said. The respirators are designed to filter 95 percent of tiny particles, including influenza viruses.
“If people were careful about their use and used them consistently, could masks provide some level of protection? I would say ‘Yes,’” Schaffner said.
‘You could get a false sense of security’
But if any of those conditions aren’t met, people are better off tossing both kinds of masks and avoiding the illusion they’re protected at all, he added....
Masks must be worn properly, consistently
But in both cases, masks needed to be used along with other preventive measures such as frequent handwashing and staying away from sick people.
The level of protection depended on whether the masks were worn properly — over both the mouth and nose, for instance — and whether they were worn consistently. One problem with the N-95 masks is that although they filter microscopic particles, they also impede breathing, making them uncomfortable to wear for extended periods of time, Schaffner said.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30464365/
Guidelines posted this week by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend that people avoid close contact and crowded conditions rather than relying on face masks for protection from infection during a flu pandemic. But they also suggest that face masks might reduce risk if it’s impossible to avoid crowds or people who are already infected.
"Very little is known about the benefits of wearing face masks or respirators to help control the spread of pandemic flu," the CDC notes.
The trouble, said Schaffner, is that whether or not face masks protect against viruses such as the swine flu depends greatly on what kind of masks people use and how well they wear them.
There are basically two kinds of face masks: loose-fitting surgical or medical masks made of soft, thin cloth that sell for pennies apiece, and form-fitting masks, also known as N-95 respirators, made of spun plastic fibers that filter small particles. They sell for a few dollars each.
The surgical masks are generally used to protect other people from the cough spray of the wearer, Schaffner said. The respirators are designed to filter 95 percent of tiny particles, including influenza viruses.
“If people were careful about their use and used them consistently, could masks provide some level of protection? I would say ‘Yes,’” Schaffner said.
‘You could get a false sense of security’
But if any of those conditions aren’t met, people are better off tossing both kinds of masks and avoiding the illusion they’re protected at all, he added....
Masks must be worn properly, consistently
But in both cases, masks needed to be used along with other preventive measures such as frequent handwashing and staying away from sick people.
The level of protection depended on whether the masks were worn properly — over both the mouth and nose, for instance — and whether they were worn consistently. One problem with the N-95 masks is that although they filter microscopic particles, they also impede breathing, making them uncomfortable to wear for extended periods of time, Schaffner said.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30464365/