Relative efficacy of masks and respirators as source control for viral aerosol shedding from people infected with SARS-CoV-2: a controlled human exhaled breath aerosol experimental study.
EBioMedicine
; 104: 105157, 2024 Jun.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38821778
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Tight-fitting masks and respirators, in manikin studies, improved aerosol source control compared to loose-fitting masks. Whether this translates to humans is not known.METHODS:
We compared efficacy of masks (cloth and surgical) and respirators (KN95 and N95) as source control for SARS-CoV-2 viral load in exhaled breath of volunteers with COVID-19 using a controlled human experimental study. Volunteers (N = 44, 43% female) provided paired unmasked and masked breath samples allowing computation of source-control factors.FINDINGS:
All masks and respirators significantly reduced exhaled viral load, without fit tests or training. A duckbill N95 reduced exhaled viral load by 98% (95% CI 97%-99%), and significantly outperformed a KN95 (p < 0.001) as well as cloth and surgical masks. Cloth masks outperformed a surgical mask (p = 0.027) and the tested KN95 (p = 0.014).INTERPRETATION:
These results suggest that N95 respirators could be the standard of care in nursing homes and healthcare settings when respiratory viral infections are prevalent in the community and healthcare-associated transmission risk is elevated.FUNDING:
Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and The Flu Lab.Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Banco de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Carga Viral
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Respiradores N95
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SARS-CoV-2
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COVID-19
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Máscaras
Límite:
Adult
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Female
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Humans
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Male
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Middle aged
Idioma:
En
Revista:
EBioMedicine
Año:
2024
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
Estados Unidos