Do you need to wear a face mask? CDC is rethinking its guidance: shots

Researchers reviewing the use of surgical masks say that even without symptoms, they can be infected with the virus and can spread the virus in public places.

Elijah Nouvelage / Bloomberg via Getty Images

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Elijah Nouvelage / Bloomberg via Getty Images

Researchers reviewing the use of surgical masks say that even without symptoms, they can be infected with the virus and can spread the virus in public places.

Elijah Nouvelage / Bloomberg via Getty Images

A few months ago, wearing a face mask while traveling to a grocery store might seem ridiculous. And in fact, the main public health message from the US Centers for Disease Control was that most people did not need to wear it.

However, with the proliferation of coronavirus cases, there is new thinking about the benefits of masks by slowing the spread. The CDC states that it is currently considering its policy and may be considering recommendations to encourage wider use.

At the moment According to the CDC website, face masks need only be worn by people who are sick or are taking care of those who are ill and cannot wear a mask.

But, NPR Monday InterviewAuthorities said CDC director Robert Redfield said authorities are reviewing data on mask use by the general public.

“I can tell you this issue of the data and whether it contributes [to prevention] We are actively reviewing it as we speak, “Redfield told NPR.

Other prominent public health professionals have recently raised this issue. Former FDA member Scott Gottlieb told NPR that wearing a mask is “a way to further protect those who need to go out.” That’s a step you can take-in addition to washing your hands and avoiding gatherings.

so A paper outlining the roadmap for resuming the country, Gottlieb argues that, for the public good, during this period of this social distance, the public should be encouraged to wear a mask.

“Face masks, when widely used, are most effective at slowing the spread of SARS-CoV-2, as they help prevent subconsciously infected individuals from becoming unconsciously infected. “Wrote Gottieb. Gottlieb points to Korea and Hong Kong, two places where face masks are widely used and have been shown to be well-managed for outbreaks.

Renowned public health leaders in China have also argued for the widespread use of masks in the public. George Gao, Executive Director of China Center for Disease Control and Prevention Told science The United States and Europe are making “big mistakes” by not wearing masks during this outbreak. Specifically, the use of a mask can help reduce the risk of showing people who may be infected but have not yet shown symptoms.

Gao told science if those people were wearing masks, “it could prevent the virus-borne droplets from escaping and infecting others.”

The argument for expanding the use of face masks is based on what science has learned about the asymptomatic spread during this pandemic.

Many people infected with the virus turned out No symptoms – Or only mild symptoms.

What this means is that there is no good way to know who is infected. For individuals who take responsibility when going out in public, they may not even know if they are sick or inadvertently shed the virus every time they talk to someone, like a grocery clerk.

“If these asymptomatic people can wear face masks, it may help reduce infections in the community,” he says. Elaine Shuo Feng, Infectious disease epidemiologist at the Oxford vaccine group at Oxford University.

Gottlieb argues that masks could be a good socially responsible insurance, given the realities of asymptomatic spread. “[Wearing masks] It prevents others from getting sick from you, “he says.

But still there Major concerns about mask shortages Survey published Friday in the United States United States Mayors Conference, Approximately 92% of the 213 cities were found to lack adequate supplies of face masks for first responders and healthcare professionals.

At this point, experts have emphasized that the public needs to delegate the supply of N95 medical masks to healthcare workers who are at risk each day at work.

There is also a limited supply of surgical masks and cotton masks used everywhere from dental clinics to nail salons and even handmade.

“We need to be aware that mask supply chains are very limited now,” says Gottlieb. “So you really don’t want to pull any kind of medical mask out of the system.”

Given the current shortage, it may be too early to tell the public to start wearing surgical masks now. “We certainly don’t have enough masks for health care,” says William Schaffner, Infectious disease expert at Vanderbilt University. “I wouldn’t want people to go out and buy them now, because we don’t want to siphon them out of health care.”

Where does it leave us? Some research Cotton t-shirt materials and tea towels have shown that, even with minimal effects, can help block respiratory droplets emitted by sick people.

“Anything you can think of at home, like homemade masks, shawls and scarves, can be a good idea,” says Schaffner. “It’s not clear if that will give you much protection, but some protection will help.”

But experts say that homemade masks may not work without proper assembly and processing.

For this reason, Gottlieb states that the CDC should issue guidelines to advise people on how to make their own cotton masks. “A properly constructed cotton mask should provide a reasonable degree of protection from people who carry the virus,” he told NPR.

There is no clear evidence from published studies that wearing a mask in public prevents people wearing the mask from getting sick. actually, Randomized controlled trial —Considered as a gold standard for testing the effectiveness of interventions—is limited, and the results of those tests are InconclusiveSays Elaine Shuo Feng.

However, Feng points out that randomized clinical trials have not significantly affected hand hygiene. “But for institutional reasons, we believe that hygiene is a good way to kill pathogens, and WHO still recommends hand hygiene,” she says.

These randomized studies looked at how face masks could protect wearers, but experts argue that face masks can be infected but asymptomatic people Can be transmitted to other people. It is difficult to get data on this point. 1 Meta-analysis to review mask use During the SARS epidemic, wearing masks proved beneficial in addition to other efforts to block the infection, such as hand washing. Another meta-analysis The use of masks to prevent flu transmission was not conclusive, but showed that masks could be helpful.

The study may not be conclusive, but the researchers interviewed agreed that the use of a mask was better than nothing. “There is some modest data that provides modest protection,” Schaffner says. “And we can use all the protection we can get.”

Due to concerns about pre-symptomatic spread in the community, some hospitals have changed their policies and are extending the use of masks to non-clinical employees and visitors. Last week, Boston’s general hospital took an unusual step to provide a surgical or procedural face mask to all employees who go to the hospital, even if they are not providing care to patients. Erica Shenoy Told NPR.

“This is very inconsistent with what we usually do in infection control,” she says. “But due to the unprecedented nature of the pandemic, I felt this was the right decision at this time.” She said, “If an employee became ill during work,” a face mask contained viral particles, It will help reduce the risks for people working in our facilities. “

March 29, University of California, San Francisco I started giving a surgical mask Before all staff, faculty, trainees, and visitors enter clinical care facilities within the UCSF system.

Feng is important to wear properly if people start wearing face masks regularly in public places. she is, WHO has videos How to practice proper hygiene when putting on and removing masks.

Saskia Popesque, Infectious disease researchers and biodefense consultants are skeptical that public healthy members need to start wearing masks regularly-she says people need to follow current CDC guidelines . However, if you wear a mask, it emphasizes that you need to wear it properly. This means that if it becomes damp or wet, it must be discarded. Avoid touching the front and not hurt your nose or mouth. ”

Otherwise she warns and wearing a mask can give a “false sense of security”.