A
anon_yqoaxol227dby
Guest
I’ve read and heard a lot of people say that as it relates to COVID19, “masks don’t work “
That’s a blanket statement and it depends what you mean by “work”. Mostly, it also depends on the type of mask and whether one is sick and wants to prevent disease spread or whether one is healthy and wants to avoid being infected.
So let’s start
1. N95 Mask
This mask contains a filter that filters out large and small particles as small as 0.3 microns. You may notice that some of these have valves , which basically serves to release unfiltered air when the person exhales. Health care providers have to pass a fit test to ensure proper fitting before being assigned their proper mask size.
In this case, the reason one wears this kind of mask is to protect one from being infected If worn properly. So we would wear one to see someone in the icu with covid to prevent us from being infected. we also use this mask in case someone has or is being ruled out for tuberculosis, for example.
2. Surgical Masks
These are the standard masks one may see in the hospital or TV shows. This mask protects other people by serving as a barrier to prevent droplets, splashes, sprays, or splatter containing infectious agents that the (infected) wearer might release through coughing, sneezing, talking, etc. For the person wearing it, it can protect against secretion and saliva from splashing onto a persons mouth.
But mostly, it’s used to prevent disease spread among those who are sick or may be infected and not know it, which is why one may hear that surgical masks don’t really prevent one from getting COVID19 if a person with COVID19 not wearing a mask comes in close proximity to someone wearing just a surgical mask
Basically , you shouldn’t rely or expect surgical masks to protect you from COVID-19 — you would wear them mainly as a public service to help protect others from you. So when you hear someone say that “masks don’t work”, you should ask if that person is referring to a surgical mask or an N95 mask and whether they are referring to “work” as protecting them or curbing spread by unknowingly spreading to others.
hope this clears it up
That’s a blanket statement and it depends what you mean by “work”. Mostly, it also depends on the type of mask and whether one is sick and wants to prevent disease spread or whether one is healthy and wants to avoid being infected.
So let’s start
1. N95 Mask
This mask contains a filter that filters out large and small particles as small as 0.3 microns. You may notice that some of these have valves , which basically serves to release unfiltered air when the person exhales. Health care providers have to pass a fit test to ensure proper fitting before being assigned their proper mask size.
In this case, the reason one wears this kind of mask is to protect one from being infected If worn properly. So we would wear one to see someone in the icu with covid to prevent us from being infected. we also use this mask in case someone has or is being ruled out for tuberculosis, for example.
2. Surgical Masks
These are the standard masks one may see in the hospital or TV shows. This mask protects other people by serving as a barrier to prevent droplets, splashes, sprays, or splatter containing infectious agents that the (infected) wearer might release through coughing, sneezing, talking, etc. For the person wearing it, it can protect against secretion and saliva from splashing onto a persons mouth.
But mostly, it’s used to prevent disease spread among those who are sick or may be infected and not know it, which is why one may hear that surgical masks don’t really prevent one from getting COVID19 if a person with COVID19 not wearing a mask comes in close proximity to someone wearing just a surgical mask
Basically , you shouldn’t rely or expect surgical masks to protect you from COVID-19 — you would wear them mainly as a public service to help protect others from you. So when you hear someone say that “masks don’t work”, you should ask if that person is referring to a surgical mask or an N95 mask and whether they are referring to “work” as protecting them or curbing spread by unknowingly spreading to others.
hope this clears it up