A team of researchers studying the effectiveness of different types of face masks found that it provides the best protection COVID-19, the fit of a mask is just as important or more important than the material from which it is made.
Cambridge University researchers have conducted a series of different fit tests and found that when a high performance mask – such as an N95, KN95 or FFP2 mask – is not properly fitted, it does not perform better than a cloth . mask. Slight differences in facial features, such as the amount of fat under the skin, make significant differences in how well a mask fits.
The results, published in the journal PLoS ONE, also suggests that the routine for fits used in many healthcare settings has high failure rates, as small carriers can be difficult or impossible to detect. Although the sample size was small, the researchers hope that their findings will help develop new and fitness tests quickly and reliably, in the event of future public health emergencies. The current study only evaluated the impact of fit on the wearer of the mask – the team will evaluate how fitness affects the protection of others in future research.
The COVID-19 pandemic has made appropriate face masks an important piece of protective equipment for health care workers and civilians. Although it is shown that it is important to wear face masks to slow down the spread of the virus, there is still a lack of understanding about the role that a good match plays in ensuring its effectiveness.
“We know that unless there is a good seal between the mask and the wearer’s face, many aerosols and drops will leak through the top and sides of the mask, as many people who wear glasses will know, said Eugenia O ‘. Kelly of Cambridge’s Department of Engineering, the first author of the magazine. ‘We wanted to quantitatively evaluate the amount of fit that different types of masks offer, and the most important thing is to evaluate it accuracy of the implementation of aptitude tests by comparing the results of aptitude test with quantitative results of the aptitude test.
For the study, seven participants first evaluated the N95 and KN95 masks by conducting an appropriate investigation, according to NHS guidelines. Participants then underwent quantitative testing – which uses a particle counter to measure the concentration of particles inside and outside the mask – while wearing N95 and KN95 masks, surgical masks and material masks. The results assessed the protection of the mask wearer, which is important in the clinical setting.
N95 masks – which are of a similar standard to the FFP3 masks available in the UK and the rest of Europe – offer higher levels of protection than the other categories of masks tested; however, most N95 masks could not adequately participate in the participants.
In their study, the researchers found that N95 masks filtered more than 95% of the air particles when properly applied, providing excellent protection. In some cases, however, poorly fitted N95 masks were only comparable to surgical or cloth masks.
“It’s not enough to assume that any N95 model will fit the majority of the population,” O’Kelly said. “The 8511 N95 that is most appropriate fit only three out of the seven participants in our study.”
One observation the researchers made during their study was that the width of the flange of the mask – the area of the material that comes in contact with the skin – could be a critical feature to fit. Masks that fit most participants usually have larger, more flexible flanges around the border.
It was also observed that small facial differences had a significant impact on the quantitative pace. “Fitting the face perfectly is a difficult technical challenge. As our research shows, small differences such as a centimeter wider nose or slightly fuller cheeks can make or break the fit of a mask,” O’Kelly said.
Self-execution control is attractive because it saves time and resources, and it is often the only method available. However, this study and studies of fitness systems in other countries indicate that such fitness systems are not reliable.
The researchers hope their results will be useful to those working on new technologies and programs to be fit so that healthcare and other frontline workers are adequately protected in the event of future pandemics. In addition, they hope that these results will address the importance of fitting into clinics of clinical quality, especially if the public wants to use many such masks. This study did not evaluate the impact of suitability on the protection of others, which is a future area of research.
Reference: “Compare the Fit of N95, KN95, Surgical and Cloth Face Masks and Assess the Accuracy of Fit Check” by Eugenia O’Kelly, Anmol Arora, Sophia Pirog, James Ward and P. John Clarkson, January 22, 2021, PLOS ONE.
DOI: 10.1371 / journal.pone.0245688