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Am I really protected from infection if I am the only person wearing a mask in a store or other indoor location?

it is true masks It works best when everyone in the room wears one. This is because when an infected person wears a mask, a large percentage of the infectious particles they inhale are trapped, stopping viral spread at its source. And with fewer viral particles floating around the room, the masks others wear will likely deter those who escape.

But there is ample evidence that masks protect the wearer even when those around them are unmasked. The amount of protection depends on the quality of the mask and how well it fits. During a hotel epidemic in Switzerlandfor example, several employees and one guest who tested positive for coronavirus wore only a face shield (no mask); Those who wore masks were not infected. And a Tennessee study communities in mask powers had lower hospitalization rates than areas where masks were not required.

“Healthcare workers, scientists working with nasty pathogens, and workers who may be exposed to hazardous airborne particles on the job rely on specialty masks like N95s for protection, so we know that properly fitted, high-efficiency masks work,” Linsey said. Marr is a Virginia Tech professor of engineering and one of the world’s leading experts on viral transmission.

A number of laboratory studies have documented that a mask protects the wearer, but this level of protection can vary depending on the type of mask, the material from which it is made, the experimental setup, and how particle exposure is measured.

But the gist of all studies is that a mask reduces the potential exposure of the person wearing it. Here are some of the findings.

• A study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that a standard surgical mask only protected the wearer from about 7.5 percent of the particles produced by a simulated cough. But knotting the loops and pinching the sides of the medical mask reduced exposure by about 65 percent. (watch this video To see the “knot and stretch” method.) Covering the surgical mask with a cloth mask, a technique known as double masking, reduced exposure to simulated cough particles by 83 percent.

• A Virginia Tech study looked at how well homemade masks, surgical masks, and face shields protect the wearer by particle size. Research has shown that most masks can block very large particles, such as those caused by sneezing. But when the researchers looked at the smaller aerosol particles that were the hardest to block, protection ranged from close to zero with a face shield to about 30 percent protection with a surgical mask. (Percentages in the study cannot be directly compared to CDC node-plugging as testing methods differ.) Based on the findings, Dr. Marr and colleagues concluded that a two-layer cloth mask is made of: Flexible, tightly woven fabric combined with a filter material (such as a coffee filter or surgical mask) can provide good protection by reducing 70 percent of the most penetrating particles and capturing 90 percent or more of the larger particles. They also found that headbands or ties fit better than ear loops.

• research from Tokyo tested how well different types of masks protect the wearer from real coronavirus particles. The study showed that even a simple cotton mask offered some protection to the wearer (17 to 27 percent). Medical masks, including the surgical mask (47 to 50 percent protection), the loose-fitting N95 (57 to 86 percent protection), and the tightly sealed N95 (79 to 90 percent protection), performed better.

• While many lab studies test masks using dummy heads, 2008 study used real people to measure how well the masks could protect the wearer against the respiratory virus. Study subjects wore different types of masks equipped with special receptors that could measure the particle concentration on both sides of the masks. In this study, cloth masks reduced exposure by 60 percent, surgical masks by 76 percent, and N95 masks by 99 percent.

While laboratory studies all show that a mask can protect the wearer, how well masks perform in the real world depends on a number of variables, such as how consistently people use masks, whether a person is in high-risk situations, and the rate of infection. in the community. a Danish study Of the 6,000 participants, half of whom were told to wear masks, there was no benefit from wearing a mask, but the study much criticized for its poor design.

Laboratory studies have shown that a high quality medical mask such as N95, KN95 or KF94 works best. While vaccination is the best protection against Covid-19, even vaccinated people are advised to avoid crowds or large groups in enclosed spaces when the vaccination status of others is unknown. Given that the delta variant is much more contagious than other variants, Dr. When you can’t keep your distance or be outside, or when no one around you is masking, Marr recommended wearing the highest quality mask possible.

“If I was in a situation where I had to rely solely on my mask for protection – it could be unvaccinated people, the crowd, I don’t know anything about ventilation – I would wear the best mask in my wardrobe, which is an N95,” Dr. Marr. “We need to wear the best masks possible in high-risk situations, as Delta has proven to be much more easily transmitted and vaccinated people can be infected.”