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**mixin** · January 26, 2009, 08:19 AM

Re: Sydney study about wearing masks

I couldn't easily find it at EID

It's shown (but not yet available) in the Feb. issue, soon to be released.

**tropical** · January 26, 2009, 10:00 AM

Re: Sydney study about wearing masks

In 5 years I had saw a bunch of papers/studies about these masks and now we still must "wait some studies" ...

I don't need to wait on any new study about.
The diameter of the viral/microbial particles were well known, and the holes in the mask/respirator air enter also.

It's plain math to compare those two parameters and pick onto the ER/GP/hospital/care/... decision papers what kind of masks must be administered to the daily ER/hospital/... work, and what kind to be mandatory weared in an case of an novel infective agent/pandemic.

The fact is some countries make enaugh stocks, some not.

So, what would remain to the population - the ordinary surgical non-enaugh-filtering masks for "cosmetic" populistic blabling purposes, because when something already happens it can't be buyed any private/... stock.

We need more money/stocks/distribution/mandatory wearing in the main/local sites in case of something, not studies ...

**Shiloh** · January 26, 2009, 01:51 PM

Re: Sydney study about wearing masks

Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases...0126082530.htm

Mask-wearing Significantly Boosts Flu Protection

ScienceDaily (Jan. 26, 2009) ? Donning a face mask is an easy way to boost protection from severe respiratory illnesses such as influenza and SARS, new research from the University of New South Wales (UNSW) has found, but convincing a reluctant public and health workers is proving a struggle.

In a world-first clinical trial of the efficacy of masks, researchers found adult mask wearers* in the home were four times more likely than non-wearers to be protected against respiratory viruses, including the common cold.

The findings ? published recently in Emerging Infectious Diseases, the journal of the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention ? have global implications and are particularly relevant to efforts to combat the spread of flu pandemics and other emerging respiratory diseases such as SARS.

"In the event of a severe pandemic, demand for protection could become a law and order issue," said lead author of the paper, Raina MacIntyre, who is Professor of Infectious Diseases Epidemiology and head of UNSW's School of Public Health and Community Medicine.

"In a crisis, vaccine development is likely to be delayed and drugs may be in short supply or not available at all," she said. "Limited supplies will be directed first to front line health workers, so masks are an important means of protection for the community, who otherwise may be last in line for vaccines and drugs."

While some governments are already stockpiling masks for use in emergencies, Professor MacIntyre said these guidelines had been implemented without evidence to support them.

"We now have provided that evidence. Masks play an important role in reducing transmission if they are worn properly."

At a day-to-day level, the study is also good news for parents of toddlers and young children.

"There is no effective treatment for the 90 or so common cold viruses that make families sick each winter, but masks could provide simple and effective protection," Professor MacIntyre said.

Commissioned and funded by the Australian Department of Health and Ageing in response to an urgent policy need, the study is the first randomised controlled clinical trial of masks to be conducted internationally. Researchers at UNSW, Sydney's Westmead Hospital, Imperial College (London) and the National Centre for Immunisation Research studied more than 280 adults in 143 families in Sydney during the winter seasons of 2006 and 2007. The adults were randomly allocated masks when exposed to a sick child in the household.

Professor MacIntyre said a drawback was participants' low compliance, with less than half reporting having worn the masks often or always. However, adherence to preventative measures is known to vary depending on perception of risk and would be expected to increase during a pandemic.

The next pressing research question is the value of the use of masks among health care workers. Preliminary work in Australia in 2007 showed very low acceptance of and compliance with mask use by hospital doctors and nurses.

Professor MacIntyre and her team, along with the Beijing Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are now running a large trial of masks in close to 2,000 health care workers in more than 20 hospitals in China, where compliance with masks is much greater.

"Results from this trial could have wide implications for not only pandemic influenza, but a range of communicable diseases spread within hospitals,' Professor MacIntyre said.

*both surgical and non-fit-tested P2 masks.
Adapted from materials provided by University of New South Wales, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

**gsgs** · January 26, 2009, 03:43 PM

Re: Sydney study about wearing masks

good news.
even surgical masks seem to be good.

Now design them so they are more comfortable.

**tropical** · January 27, 2009, 03:46 AM

Re: Sydney study about wearing masks

That's the main problem (plus money/stocks):

#4:
"Preliminary work in Australia in 2007 showed very low acceptance of and compliance with mask use by hospital doctors and nurses."

The Chineses obviously learn a lesson with SARS:

"Professor MacIntyre and her team, along with the Beijing Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are now running a large trial of masks in close to 2,000 health care workers in more than 20 hospitals in China, where compliance with masks is much greater."

And professionals, stick to in practice to the antispreading guideliness.
Thrown out the more confortable working way, and restrict access to the wards/amb. to visitors/caughers, releaf the hospital patients from hospital aquired infections.

"Results from this trial could have wide implications for not only pandemic influenza, but a range of communicable diseases spread within hospitals,' Professor MacIntyre said."

P.S.
#1:
"Britain plans to buy 350M surgical masks"

Even if it would be a real stock, not only a "plan", that is meaning:

a surgical mask (a part the NON-air-thighteness of it) must be thrown after it was exposed to infected air before going to clean rooms, so have min. 4 of it during an warking day is a must, than:
4 daily x 30 days x 3 months of duty/seasonal flu period = 360 surgical mask (worker/cary person/people) - to round it, make it 350

350M / 350 = the quantity needed only for 1 Milion of citizens/workers

The above quantity of NON-thighten masks could be enaugh only for the med workers ...

**gsgs** · January 27, 2009, 04:09 AM

Re: Sydney study about wearing masks

they are very cheap, could also be reused after some weeks
or after disinfection.

**tropical** · January 27, 2009, 05:41 AM

Re: Sydney study about wearing masks

Originally posted by gsgs View Post

they are very cheap, could also be reused after some weeks
or after disinfection.

if "they" ~= ordinary surgical masks (the green "thin phelphed" ones),

than, no hard feelings gsgs, but what kind of desinfection?

the Y rays ...

**Giuseppe** · January 27, 2009, 04:04 PM

Re: Sydney study about wearing masks

Face Masks and Respiratory Virus Transmission | CDC EID

Face Mask Use and Control of Respiratory Virus Transmission in Households

C. Raina MacIntyre, Simon Cauchemez, Dominic E. Dwyer, Holly Seale, Pamela Cheung, Gary Browne, Michael Fasher, James Wood, Zhanhai Gao, Robert Booy, and Neil Ferguson

Author affiliations: University of New South Wales School of Public Health and Community Medicine, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia (C.R. MacIntyre, H. Seale, J. Wood, Z. Gao); Children's Hospital at Westmead, The University of Sydney, Sydney (C.R. MacIntyre, P. Cheung, R. Booy, G. Browne); Imperial College London, London, UK (S. Cauchemez, N. Ferguson); Westmead Hospital, Sydney (D.E. Dwyer); and The Wentworth Division of General Practice, Sydney (M. Fasher)

Abstract

Many countries are stockpiling face masks for use as a nonpharmaceutical intervention to control virus transmission during an influenza pandemic. We conducted a prospective cluster-randomized trial comparing surgical masks, non?fit-tested P2 masks, and no masks in prevention of influenza-like illness (ILI) in households.
Mask use adherence was self-reported.
During the 2006 and 2007 winter seasons, 286 exposed adults from 143 households who had been exposed to a child with clinical respiratory illness were recruited. We found that adherence to mask use significantly reduced the risk for ILI-associated infection, but <50% of participants wore masks most of the time.
We concluded that household use of face masks is associated with low adherence and is ineffective for controlling seasonal respiratory disease.
However, during a severe pandemic when use of face masks might be greater, pandemic transmission in households could be reduced.
-

<cite cite="http://www.cdc.gov/eid/content/15/2/233.htm">Face Masks and Respiratory Virus Transmission | CDC EID</cite>

**Giuseppe** · January 27, 2009, 04:08 PM

Re: Sydney study about wearing masks

Full text of the above abstract: http://www.flutrackers.com/forum/sho...42&postcount=2

**Sally Furniss** · January 27, 2009, 04:54 PM

Re: Sydney study about wearing masks

Face Masks Protect Against Flu and Common Cold, Study Shows

By Nicolas Johnson

 Jan. 26 (Bloomberg) -- Parents wearing face masks at home are four times less likely to catch their children’s seasonal cold or flu, a new study shows, providing the first clinical evidence that masks could help in the event of a flu pandemic.

The research followed 286 adults in Sydney during the winters of 2006 and 2007. Another study of 2,000 health workers in Chinese hospitals shows similar results, said researcher Raina MacIntyre of the University of New South Wales.

The world is closer to another influenza pandemic than at any time since 1968, when the last of the previous century’s three pandemics occurred, according to the World Health Organization.

“Our study is important because it’s provided the first positive evidence,” MacIntyre said in a telephone interview. “Whatever drugs and vaccines we have available will be reserved for mainly health-care workers, so for people in the community it’s something that’s relatively cheap, and we know it’s effective, if it’s worn.”

The study was published in this week’s Emerging Infectious Diseases journal of the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The authors found many adults didn’t comply, and were reluctant to wear surgical masks, probably because the perceived risk of catching a cold wasn’t very high, the researchers said. In the event of a life-threatening disease, compliance would probably be much higher, they said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Nicolas Johnson in Tokyo at nicojohnson@bloomberg.net .
Last Updated: January 26, 2009 08:00 EST

Bloomberg - Are you a robot?

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=washingtonstory&sid=a6UcweV.39JI

**mixin** · January 27, 2009, 05:33 PM

Re: Sydney study about wearing masks

Originally posted by tropical View Post

if "they" ~= ordinary surgical masks (the green "thin phelphed" ones),

than, no hard feelings gsgs, but what kind of desinfection?

the Y rays ...

Maybe UV lights?

**gsgs** · January 28, 2009, 01:55 AM

Re: Sydney study about wearing masks

study now available at EID:

Face Mask Use and Control of Respiratory Virus Transmission in Households

http://www.cdc.gov/eid/content/15/2/233.htm

Face Masks and Respiratory Virus Transmission

my summary:

during winter seasons 2006 and 2007 in Sydney 3 groups were formed:
(surgical,P2(N95),no mask) of (180,172,192) children ,(94,92,100) adults
in (47,46,52) households with one sick child with ILI

Samples were taken from 141 sick children; viruses were found in 90 :
flu-A in 19, flu-B in 7

wearing masks reduced (p=0.015) the adult household infection risk
by (~70%,~70%,0%)

no difference between P2 and surgical

ILI was observed in (21,14,16) adults = 18%

Samples were taken from 43 of the 51 sick adults, virus found in 17/43 (6,8,3)
In (3,5,2) cases it was the same virus as the index-child
In (1,1,0) cases, ni virus was found in the index child
In (2,2,1) cases , they had different viruses

---------------------------------------

I don't yet understand this.
They succeeded to fog the results.

There was _more_ ILI in the mask groups, yet they mysteriously
conclude an infection reduction of 60-80% for mask users
without showing numbers.
And despite these 60-80% they say another study (12) _also_
found no difference in the intervention "arms".

**tropical** · January 28, 2009, 05:11 AM

Re: Sydney study about wearing masks

Originally posted by mixin View Post

Maybe UV lights?

Sorry mixin, but my opinion diverge.

How many UV lighters we must buy or install to make this.
Do we stay at a queue to wait such doubtfull decontamination.
___

With all respect to all the players,
ordinary surgical masks are constructed for an "use and threw" tecnic.

The P2 aren't 100% tight, that's why can failure.

P3 also are to be threwed after the usage.

Do you reuse your infected latex gloves?

No, you must have eventualy some special ones, which construction is builted to be decontaminated (as massive gloves rubber/glass... masks).

It can't be any fogging for reusing odinary "use it once" equipment because of high money investments in real quantities, or qualities of the biosecurity stocks.

The folks like to wearing nothing, the producers don't want to make vacc. in advance to be threwed after, "you are on your own", "social distancing" would be the key because will be no vacc./meds ...

Gi'me a break.

Or we must realy try to be prepared for an problem, or it is better back off on suggesting preparations.

**jasonfoster** · January 28, 2009, 05:33 AM

Re: Sydney study about wearing masks

I have my own UV lights (55W each) as part of my water sanitation.

The problem with UV disinfecting materials is that the penetration of UVC in most materials is not very good. The UVC doesn't reach into the cloth where it is needed. It does go through water and quartz glass but not ordinary glass (for instance).

What would be the problem with chlorine bleach on the mask?

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