Comparing mask fit and usability of traditional and nanofibre N95 filtering facepiece respirators before and after nursing procedures

Suen, Lorna Kwai Ping; Guo, Yueping; Ho, Suki S.K.; Au-Yeung, Cypher H.; Lam, Simon Ching

doi:10.1016/j.jhin.2019.09.014

Cited by 78 publications

(78 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…For the commercial masks, surgical mask is the most breathable with an air permeability of 0.64 ± 0.02 kPa•s m -1 , followed by the N95 mask (1.06 ± 0.04 kPa•s m -1 ) and the KF94 mask (1.39 ± 0.05 kPa•s m -1 ). The results are analogous to a recent research report, indicating the accuracy of the results in this study (Suen et al, 2020). As for the self-developed masks, the air permeability is 1.41 ± 0.04 kPa•s m -1 , 1.61 ± 0.05 kPa•s m -1 , 1.55 ± 0.04 kPa•s m -1 and 1.93 ± 0.08 kPa•s m -1 for Samples A-D, respectively.…”

Section: Reusable Maskssupporting

confidence: 92%

Addressing COVID-19 Spread: Development of Reliable Testing System for Mask Reuse

Yao

Yip

et al. 2020

Aerosol Air Qual. Res.

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While the novel coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) continues to wreak havoc globally, self-protection from possible infection by wearing a mask in daily life has become the norm in many places. The unprecedented demand for masks has now attracted attention on their filtration efficiency. Furthermore, the widespread use of disposable masks has led to shortage of filter materials and problems with their haphazard disposal. In this study, a testing system that is based on standardized methods has been established and enhanced to reliably measure the particle filtration efficiency (PFE) of masks. Quality control experiments that examine the filtration efficiency of polystyrene latex (PSL) particles that are 0.1 µm in size and sodium chloride (NaCl) particles that range from 0.01-1.0 µm are conducted to determine the reliability of the testing system. Moreover, various textile materials are tested to fabricate 3-layer face masks, and the PFE of these masks is tested by using the proposed testing system to find the most suitable materials and the likelihood of their reusability. Among the tested materials, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) used as the membrane in the filter layer has the highest PFE of 88.33% ± 1.80%, which is mainly due to its dense and multilayer structure. The air permeability of the self-developed masks ranges from 1.41 ± 0.04 to 1.93 ± 0.08, less breathable than the commercial masks. The reusability of a mask that uses PTFE as the membrane in the filter layer is tested by gently washing the mask 30 times and then drying the mask in air before the PFE is measured. The PFE is only reduced by 10-20% after 30 washes, thus indicating the potential reusability of the mask. The findings in this study will contribute to reducing the pressure of mask shortages and are an environmentally friendly solution to the massive use of disposable masks.

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Section: Reusable Maskssupporting

confidence: 92%

Addressing COVID-19 Spread: Development of Reliable Testing System for Mask Reuse

Yao

Yip

et al. 2020

Aerosol Air Qual. Res.

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“…Additionally, hospitals can adopt the paperless offices in ALDs, thereby reducing direct and indirect contact with potentially contaminated materials. Staff in the Sterile Supply Department should wear more advanced protective equipment when cleaning surgical instruments and transporting patients (Suen et al, 2020). Staff in Convalescent Department should take the same protective measures as healthcare workers when visiting patient's home, as they may constitute an infection source to spread the virus to other ALDs and clinical departments.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

COVID-19: Presumed Infection Routes and Psychological Impact on Staff in Administrative and Logistics Departments in a Designated Hospital in Wuhan, China

et al. 2020

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The baseline, job before diagnosis, presumed infection environment, use of protective equipment, and psychological status before and after diagnosis were collected and analyzed. A total of 18 uninfected staff members working alongside them in the same environment and 18 random matched infected doctors and nurses formed two control groups; the psychological impact of these three groups was then compared. Results: Of the 18 members of staff, 88.89% were infected due to the working environment (hospital), and nine had face-to-face conversations with doctors and nurses in their daily work. Many staff members did not take any protective measures in their routine work. Before they were diagnosed, 12 staff members were aware of the seriousness of the epidemic, and most of the staff maintained a neutral attitude to the COVID-19 outbreak. A total of 77.78% of the staff experienced psychological stress or emotional changes after diagnosis, which were mainly caused by family health and disease related issues. Most of them managed their emotions by self-control and video calls with their families. There was no significant difference in psychological impact among the three groups, but uninfected staff members were fully aware of the seriousness of the epidemic. Conclusions: Effective protective measures should be taken for staff members in ALDs. Psychological interventions are very important to help infected staff members in ALDs cope with psychological distress.

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“…Once they recover, they may consider using disposable face masks (while frequently changing them) and avoiding close contact with coworkers. However, the value of wearing face masks is controversial, to say the least [94]. Surgical masks do not fully protect against airborne viruses as they do not fully seal the nose and the mouth.…”

Section: Protective Measures To Prevent Spread Of the Diseasementioning

confidence: 99%

Insights into the Recent 2019 Novel Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) in Light of Past Human Coronavirus Outbreaks

et al. 2020

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Coronaviruses (CoVs) are RNA viruses that have become a major public health concern since the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome-CoV (SARS-CoV) outbreak in 2002. The continuous evolution of coronaviruses was further highlighted with the emergence of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome-CoV (MERS-CoV) outbreak in 2012. Currently, the world is concerned about the 2019 novel CoV (SARS-CoV-2) that was initially identified in the city of Wuhan, China in December 2019. Patients presented with severe viral pneumonia and respiratory illness. The number of cases has been mounting since then. As of late February 2020, tens of thousands of cases and several thousand deaths have been reported in China alone, in addition to thousands of cases in other countries. Although the fatality rate of SARS-CoV-2 is currently lower than SARS-CoV, the virus seems to be highly contagious based on the number of infected cases to date. In this review, we discuss structure, genome organization, entry of CoVs into target cells, and provide insights into past and present outbreaks. The future of human CoV outbreaks will not only depend on how the viruses will evolve, but will also depend on how we develop efficient prevention and treatment strategies to deal with this continuous threat.

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Comparing mask fit and usability of traditional and nanofibre N95 filtering facepiece respirators before and after nursing procedures

Cited by 78 publications

References 24 publications

Addressing COVID-19 Spread: Development of Reliable Testing System for Mask Reuse

Addressing COVID-19 Spread: Development of Reliable Testing System for Mask Reuse

COVID-19: Presumed Infection Routes and Psychological Impact on Staff in Administrative and Logistics Departments in a Designated Hospital in Wuhan, China

Insights into the Recent 2019 Novel Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) in Light of Past Human Coronavirus Outbreaks

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