Should I wear a mask to protect against delta variants, as recommended by the World Health Organization?

Cleveland, Ohio-Most of the US mask orders have been lifted, and the new coronavirus infection and hospitalization are slowly slowing down in Ohio. Nevertheless, the World Health Organization recommends that everyone, including vaccinated people, wear a mask indoors.

What does the person in charge do?

The delta variant of the coronavirus complicated the conversation about face masks. This variant, also known as B.1.617.2, is more contagious than the original strain of the virus, causing concern around the world. This has contributed to the surge in infections in India and the United Kingdom and is now the predominant strain in the United States.

As a result, the World Health Organization recommends that everyone wear a mask indoors. Officials in the Los Angeles and St. Louis regions have issued the same guidance, but almost one in the country. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention continues to say that only unvaccinated people should wear masks. And there was no order to wear a new mask from Ohio Governor Mike DeWine.

Various guidance is causing confusion for many individuals. However, health experts told cleveland.com that the various guidance was due to the fact that WHO, the CDC, and local authorities are providing advice to different audiences.

WHO takes a more cautious approach than the CDC because vaccines are not available in other parts of the world like in the United States.And Infections have recently doubled in Los Angeles CountySo I urged the authorities to recommend a return to the mask.

Dr. David Daudi, an associate professor of epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, makes various recommendations confusing, but also “right.”

“It’s important for people to realize that there’s confusion here, because the right message isn’t a universal message,” says Daudi. “Just because WHO is saying something doesn’t mean that everyone in the world needs to act in exactly the same way. It just needs to provide a very broad level of guidance. . “

According to experts, the problem is that different messages can confuse people reading news headlines without considering their context. Confusion can undermine someone’s confidence in public health guidelines.

Ryan Demar, an epidemiologist at the University of Minnesota’s School of Public Health, said that if a Delta variant causes a surge in infectious diseases in the region, it could make it difficult to sell, where health officials return to the mask. Said that it should be recommended.

“Many of these policies have so many political divisions that I think we have to make really clear decisions to minimize the appearance of inconsistencies,” Demar said. Says.

Experts acknowledged that it can be a difficult sale for everyone to wear a mask again. In the first place, many people categorically opposed it. And since anyone vaccinated has a low risk of infection or serious illness, they may hesitate to return to restrictions that bring little benefit to them.

However, most experts believe that when pushes come in, even vaccinated people will be happy to wear a mask if they want to protect others. Richard Petty, a professor of psychology at Ohio State University, said that if they had previously followed science, they would likely do it again.

“Many people who wore it before understood the debate about why it still benefits public health, even if it doesn’t necessarily benefit you personally. I think we’ll start over, “Petty said.

Why are vaccinated people required to wear a mask?

The data show that the COVID-19 vaccine significantly reduces the risk of delta mutants. Pfizer, Modana, Johnson & Johnson vaccines have all been found to be effective in preventing infections and are even more effective in preventing severe illness, hospitalization and death.

However, it is clear that Delta variants pose a significant risk to unvaccinated people, including more than half of Ohio’s population.The data is that From 40% Increased infectivity by 60% At least one study from Lancet found that it causes more serious illness than other varieties.

Dr. Joseph Kabaza, a lung and life-saving physician at Cleveland Clinic, said it remains a bit unclear how the vaccine affects the ability of the virus to infect others. However, he believes that if the vaccine develops a “breakthrough” infection, it is unlikely because it will reduce someone’s viral load and severity of symptoms.

“In general, I think people who are fully vaccinated with a normal immune system are very unlikely to get the COVID-19 virus, whether or not they are deltas,” said Khabbaza. ..

Experts said the main reason some health officials are asking everyone to wear masks again is because it’s easier than picking out unvaccinated ones. This eliminates the need to check someone’s vaccination status, especially before entering a so-called store or restaurant. “Vaccine passport” has become a political flashpoint..

According to Daudi, wearing a mask is also a less restrictive option to protect public health than other means, such as limiting a company’s capabilities.

Is it possible to return to Ohio Mask?

At this time, experts do not believe that Ohio needs to return to any kind of mask guidance. The risk to vaccinated individuals is relatively low unless more dangerous variants emerge than Delta.

“If you’re vaccinated, you can’t imagine a scenario where you need to lose sleep with COVID, at least in the near future, as it was in the pre-vaccination era,” says Khabbaza.

However, if the data indicates that the delta variant is causing spikes in the back eye condition, a mask may be needed. Demar said he was on the lookout for hospitalization and death. Authorities may need to consider some restrictions if they begin to increase.

Daudi said he would look for trends in the data rather than a specific benchmark. For example, as in Los Angeles County, if the infection doubles in a week, it could be a warning sign.

“We don’t think we’re in a situation where the incident will never happen again,” he said. “We can’t just take off our shoes and say it’s over, and we did the job.”

Various messaging issues

One of the first rules of messaging is to be simple and consistent, Petty said. Providing different advice to different parts of the world may actually make sense, but it causes confusion and undermines public confidence.

“If people don’t analyze exactly why one piece of advice is given in one place, conflicts arise. [versus] Another, “Petty said.

However, experts generally agree that when the time comes when Ohio needs a mask again, even vaccinated people will probably wear it again. They will answer the argument that they are low-risk but protect others and help them be good citizens, Petty said.

Ultimately, experts believe that those who were previously willing to wear a mask will probably be willing to wear it again, whether or not they have been vaccinated. ..

“The old axion that past performance is the best predictor or future performance tells us that those who listen to the guidelines will generally continue to do so, and those who do not will probably continue to resent. I think that there [them]”Demar said.