A microscopic threat Some West Michigan stores seeing demand for masks in face of bird-flu concerns
Thursday, June 15, 2006
By Michelle Miron
mmiron@kalamazoogazette.com 388-2733
Microfiber masks and respirators that are being marketed as preventive measures against disease are taking off in the Grand Rapids area -- apparently based on worries about the bird flu -- some regional medical-supply stores say.
But in the Kalamazoo area, consumers don't seem very interested.
``They are out there available, and some of the bigger health systems have some on hand,'' Steve Slater, general manager of the Airway Oxygen Inc. store in Kalamazoo and 14 others in West Michigan, said of the microfiber masks. But in Kalamazoo, he said, ``we don't have people walking in off the street and asking if we have anything for avian flu.''
The H5N1 strain of bird flu, known as avian flu, has infected 204 people worldwide and killed 113, primarily in Asia, according to the World Health Organization. It is transmitted from birds to humans, but there's concern that the virus could, at some point, mutate and easily spread from person to person like other forms of influenza.
At Grand Rapids' West Michigan Medical Supply, however, spiking category sales last fall spurred owners to create a new department that displays preventive microfiber masks, gloves, sanitizing soaps, wipes and ``isolation gowns.''
``People comment that they think maybe it's a little silly,'' store manager Jessica Korson said. ``But once they talk about it (the equipment) they realize it's not a bad thing to have in the house just in case.''
She said sales have risen 300 percent to 400 percent in the past six to eight months, with masks emerging as the best-seller and the typical customer a middle-aged parent with small children.
Advertised as tight-fitting but comfortable even during heat, humidity or long periods of wear, some microfiber masks seal on the sides and filter out most airborne viruses.
But manufacturers and sellers are being very careful about making claims that any mask will completely prevent individuals from contracting avian flu. And medical experts question whether they would be effective in a pandemic -- even if worn around-the-clock.
The flu is typically contracted through droplets or tiny particles that are sneezed or coughed into the air or transmitted by hand, they said.
A preventive vaccine is in clinical trials now but would have to be reconfigured if and when the virus mutates. Tamiflu, a prescription drug that treats symptoms, is available in limited qualities.
Slater, past president of the Michigan Home Health Association, said about 98 percent of Airway's mask sales are to medical institutions that have contingency plans in place for the avian flu -- a trend that he said probably extends throughout the state's medical-supply industry. He predicted that the average consumer might jump on the bandwagon if and when bird flu becomes a bigger issue in the United States. Unlike some experts, he doesn't foresee any problems with supply.
Congress has committed $3.1 billion toward national pandemic preparedness -- about $3 million of which is allotted to Michigan -- but current plans rely mainly on low-tech measures of containment such as quarantine and travel restrictions. The U.S. Institute of Medicine has stated that it doubts the effectiveness of most masks and respirators in completely blocking the bird-flu virus, especially if they're not regularly decontaminated and/or replaced.
``We don't want to say `Don't use it','' said Dr. Donald Burke, a Johns Hopkins University physician who helped study the issue for the Institute. ``But don't expect to be fully protected if you do use it.''
Thursday, June 15, 2006
By Michelle Miron
mmiron@kalamazoogazette.com 388-2733
Microfiber masks and respirators that are being marketed as preventive measures against disease are taking off in the Grand Rapids area -- apparently based on worries about the bird flu -- some regional medical-supply stores say.
But in the Kalamazoo area, consumers don't seem very interested.
``They are out there available, and some of the bigger health systems have some on hand,'' Steve Slater, general manager of the Airway Oxygen Inc. store in Kalamazoo and 14 others in West Michigan, said of the microfiber masks. But in Kalamazoo, he said, ``we don't have people walking in off the street and asking if we have anything for avian flu.''
The H5N1 strain of bird flu, known as avian flu, has infected 204 people worldwide and killed 113, primarily in Asia, according to the World Health Organization. It is transmitted from birds to humans, but there's concern that the virus could, at some point, mutate and easily spread from person to person like other forms of influenza.
At Grand Rapids' West Michigan Medical Supply, however, spiking category sales last fall spurred owners to create a new department that displays preventive microfiber masks, gloves, sanitizing soaps, wipes and ``isolation gowns.''
``People comment that they think maybe it's a little silly,'' store manager Jessica Korson said. ``But once they talk about it (the equipment) they realize it's not a bad thing to have in the house just in case.''
She said sales have risen 300 percent to 400 percent in the past six to eight months, with masks emerging as the best-seller and the typical customer a middle-aged parent with small children.
Advertised as tight-fitting but comfortable even during heat, humidity or long periods of wear, some microfiber masks seal on the sides and filter out most airborne viruses.
But manufacturers and sellers are being very careful about making claims that any mask will completely prevent individuals from contracting avian flu. And medical experts question whether they would be effective in a pandemic -- even if worn around-the-clock.
The flu is typically contracted through droplets or tiny particles that are sneezed or coughed into the air or transmitted by hand, they said.
A preventive vaccine is in clinical trials now but would have to be reconfigured if and when the virus mutates. Tamiflu, a prescription drug that treats symptoms, is available in limited qualities.
Slater, past president of the Michigan Home Health Association, said about 98 percent of Airway's mask sales are to medical institutions that have contingency plans in place for the avian flu -- a trend that he said probably extends throughout the state's medical-supply industry. He predicted that the average consumer might jump on the bandwagon if and when bird flu becomes a bigger issue in the United States. Unlike some experts, he doesn't foresee any problems with supply.
Congress has committed $3.1 billion toward national pandemic preparedness -- about $3 million of which is allotted to Michigan -- but current plans rely mainly on low-tech measures of containment such as quarantine and travel restrictions. The U.S. Institute of Medicine has stated that it doubts the effectiveness of most masks and respirators in completely blocking the bird-flu virus, especially if they're not regularly decontaminated and/or replaced.
``We don't want to say `Don't use it','' said Dr. Donald Burke, a Johns Hopkins University physician who helped study the issue for the Institute. ``But don't expect to be fully protected if you do use it.''