CoronaVirus Dilemma

[Eric Sedletzky]

What am I supposed to infer? They seem clear enough. The masks on an infected person help to mitigate speading the virus. Maybe what is missing is that the coughing and sneezing produces larger particles, that are indeed trapped by the mask. From the CDC:

Influenza Modes of Transmission
Traditionally, influenza viruses have been thought to spread from person to person primarily through large-particle respiratory droplet transmission (e.g., when an infected person coughs or sneezes near a susceptible person). Transmission via large-particle droplets requires close contact between source and recipient persons, because droplets generally travel only short distances (approximately 6 feet or less) through the air. Indirect contact transmission via hand transfer of influenza virus from virus-contaminated surfaces or objects to mucosal surfaces of the face (e.g., nose, mouth) may also occur. Airborne transmission via small particle aerosols in the vicinity of the infectious individual may also occur; however, the relative contribution of the different modes of influenza transmission is unclear. Airborne transmission over longer distances, such as from one patient room to another has not been documented and is thought not to occur. All respiratory secretions and bodily fluids, including diarrheal stools, of patients with influenza are considered to be potentially infectious; however, the risk may vary by strain. Detection of influenza virus in blood or stool in influenza infected patients is very uncommon.​

When a sick person wears a mask and coughs or sneezes the vapor still gets out, it just slows it down and makes it hover around their head, so not as bad as if there was nothing slowing it down.
Those N95 masks are for large particulates like bondo and sanding dusts created in body shops and industry. There is also one made by 3M that is intended for welding smoke. There is also one in a similar style that has a carbon liner in the material that is intended for nuisance vapors. None of them will be fine enough to stop viruses.
And, I might add that If a person has any facial hair that gets in the way of a perimeter seal they are useless for everything.

 

[Graeme Fraser]

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

OK I'll spell it out. The virus is too small in one direction but not the other? Regardless of what the CDC is pushing, it doesn't take much critical thinking to say...sure it does.

I'm not proposing that everyone in the US mask up, but come on people. Put the thinking caps on.

Like I mentioned in Tursiops post, the virus goes through the mask both ways, but when an infected person wears a mask and sneezes it minimizes the airborne atomized saliva by diffusing and slowing down the airflow out of the mask. In other words It’s better than having nothing covering the infected persons nose and mouth when they sneeze and cough otherwise it just broadcasts out into a whole room.
With a well person they say wearing a mask can in some cases be worse than not wearing one. Masks will get damp from respiration. This gives an airborne virus a place to hang up on and settle then dislodge and get inhaled giving the well person a better chance of getting a concentrated dose, rather than inhaling and exhaling with no mask which will be less concentrated and possibly not hang up. There is also a sense of false security with well people wearing masks giving them the idea that they are protected and can go into environments that are at high risk and be ok.
The best solution is to stay away from risky situations and high concentrations of people until they get it figured out.

 

[Centrals]

Surgical mask alone will not prevent you from picking up the virus if you pay no attention to personal hygiene.
HK has 117 confirmed case since 23rd Jan with 3 fatality. 95%+ of the population is wearing a mask in the public, probably a lot higher than SARS back in 2002/3.

2020 coronavirus outbreak in Italy - Wikipedia
The first case was reported on 31st Jan.
The spreading of the disease is quite frightening if compare with HK.

 

[Centrals]

I would rather take advice from the medical professionals who have massive experiences from dealing with coronavirus ie SARS than anyone else.

We must have done something right to stop the spreading of the virus in HK than eg. Iran and Italy.

 

[jjmochi]

From a public health perspective wearing a mask helps. You stop spreading your germs when you are still asymptomatic or have very mild symptoms, before you realize you're sick and need to wear a mask. Something like 80% of people infected have very mild symptoms and don't even realize they have it. You are also somewhat protected if someone sick coughs on you as the mask will catch the droplets. Keeping constant the number of times you touch your face / your hand hygiene / your exposure to crowds, a population that wears mask everyday will have slower spread than one who does not or one where only the visibly sick wears one. Like Centrals said HK is a perfect example.

Wearing a mask is not foolproof or the end all be all, HK also imposed social distancing measures like cancelling schools and telling workers to work from home. This probably had more of an impact, but the paranoia of the HK public and the resulting discipline around mask use / hand hygiene also helped a lot especially as you look at Italy/Europe/US now.