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The American Journal of the Medical... Jun 2022
Topics: Humans; Masks
PubMed: 35378096
DOI: 10.1016/j.amjms.2022.03.006 -
Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) Aug 2023: Noninvasive ventilation (NIV) provides positive pressure through different interfaces. A multifunctional full-face mask prototype was developed to provide NIV from... (Review)
Review
: Noninvasive ventilation (NIV) provides positive pressure through different interfaces. A multifunctional full-face mask prototype was developed to provide NIV from three sources: ICU ventilators, portable ventilators, and high-flow medical gas pipeline systems. This study aimed to evaluate the usability of this prototype mask. : This was a quantitative experimental study, conducted in two phases: the development of a full-face mask prototype NIV interface, and the evaluation of its usability by health professionals (evaluators) using a heuristic approach. The Wolf Mask prototype is a multifunctional full-face mask that makes it possible to deliver positive pressure from three different sources: microprocessor-controlled ICU ventilators, portable ventilators with single-limb circuits, and high-flow medical gas. The evaluation was conducted in three stages: presentation of the prototype to the evaluators; skills testing via simulation in a clinical environment; and a review of skills. : The prototype was developed by a multidisciplinary team and patented in Brazil. The evaluators were 10 health professionals specializing in NIV. Seven skills related to handling the prototype were evaluated. Three of the ten evaluators called for (non-urgent) changes to improve recognition of the components of the prototype. Only one evaluator called for (non-urgent) changes to improve recognition of the pieces, assembly, and checking the mask. : The newly developed multifunctional full-face mask prototype demonstrated excellent usability for providing noninvasive ventilation from multiple sources. Minor modifications may further improve the design.
Topics: Noninvasive Ventilation; Masks; Respiration, Artificial; Brazil; Computer Simulation
PubMed: 37629700
DOI: 10.3390/medicina59081410 -
American Journal of Infection Control Feb 2022During the COVID-19 pandemic, face masks are used as source control devices to reduce the expulsion of respiratory aerosols from infected people. Modifications such as...
BACKGROUND
During the COVID-19 pandemic, face masks are used as source control devices to reduce the expulsion of respiratory aerosols from infected people. Modifications such as mask braces, earloop straps, knotting and tucking, and double masking have been proposed to improve mask fit however the data on source control are limited.
METHODS
The effectiveness of mask fit modifications was determined by conducting fit tests on human subjects and simulator manikins and by performing simulated coughs and exhalations using a source control measurement system.
RESULTS
Medical masks without modification blocked ≥56% of cough aerosols and ≥42% of exhaled aerosols. Modifying fit by crossing the earloops or placing a bracket under the mask did not increase performance, while using earloop toggles, an earloop strap, and knotting and tucking the mask increased performance. The most effective modifications for improving source control performance were double masking and using a mask brace. Placing a cloth mask over a medical mask blocked ≥85% of cough aerosols and ≥91% of exhaled aerosols. Placing a brace over a medical mask blocked ≥95% of cough aerosols and ≥99% of exhaled aerosols.
CONCLUSIONS
Fit modifications can greatly improve the performance of face masks as source control devices for respiratory aerosols.
Topics: Aerosols; COVID-19; Humans; Masks; Pandemics; SARS-CoV-2
PubMed: 34924208
DOI: 10.1016/j.ajic.2021.10.041 -
Prague Medical Report 2021Laryngeal mask (LM) types have been used as an airway device for an alternative to the standard endotracheal tube (ETT). One of the novel type of LM, the Baska Mask®,...
Laryngeal mask (LM) types have been used as an airway device for an alternative to the standard endotracheal tube (ETT). One of the novel type of LM, the Baska Mask®, can be a safe alternative among the airway devices. The purpose of this study is to compare the effects of the new generation supraglottic airway device the Baska Mask® and the ETT on hemodynamic parameters (heart rate, mean arterial pressure), airway pressure and end tidal carbon dioxide (EtCO2) in patients undergoing general anesthesia. After the approval of the ethics committee, 70 patients who underwent septoplasty were included in the study. Written informed consent forms were taken from these patients. Demographic data of the patients were recorded. Hemodynamic data of patients were measured and recorded preoperative, during induction, at the time of intubation 1th, 3th and 5th minute and during extubation. Also, airway pressure and EtCO2 values of the patients were measured and recorded at the time of intubation, 1th, 3th and 5th minutes. Demographic data were similar in both groups. Mean arterial pressure, heart rate and airway pressure were lower in the group 2 (the Baska Mask® group) than in the group 1 (ETT group) and the difference was statistically significant (p<0.05). EtCO2 values were similar in both groups. No patients had tube leakage. In terms of hemodynamic and respiratory parameters the Baska Mask® is more advantageous than the ETT in short-term surgeries.
Topics: Anesthesia, General; Hemodynamics; Humans; Intubation, Intratracheal; Laryngeal Masks
PubMed: 33646937
DOI: 10.14712/23362936.2021.1 -
International Journal of Environmental... Nov 2022This work compares relative mask inhalation protection against a range of airborne particle sizes that the general public may encounter, including infectious particles,...
This work compares relative mask inhalation protection against a range of airborne particle sizes that the general public may encounter, including infectious particles, wildfire smoke and ash, and allergenic fungal and plant particles. Several mask types available to the public were modeled with respirable fraction deposition. Best-case collection efficiencies for cloth, surgical, and respirator masks were predicted to be lowest (0.3, 0.6, and 0.8, respectively) for particle types with dominant sub-micrometer modes (wildfire smoke and human-emitted bronchial particles). Conversely, all mask types were predicted to achieve good collection efficiency (up to ~1.0) for the largest-sized particle types, including pollen grains, some fungal spores, and wildfire ash. Polydisperse infectious particles were predicted to be captured by masks with efficiencies of 0.3-1.0 depending on the pathogen size distribution and the type of mask used. Viruses aerosolized orally are predicted to be captured efficiently by all mask types, while those aerosolized from bronchiolar or laryngeal-tracheal sites are captured with much lower efficiency by surgical and cloth masks. The predicted efficiencies changed very little when extrathoracic deposition was included (inhalable rather than respirable fraction) or when very large (100 µm) particles were neglected. Actual mask fit and usage will determine protection levels in practice, but the relative comparisons in this work can inform mask guidance for different inhalation hazards, including particles generated by yard work, wildfires, and infections.
Topics: Humans; Respiratory Protective Devices; Masks; Smoke; Allergens; Particle Size; Aerosols
PubMed: 36497628
DOI: 10.3390/ijerph192315555 -
Cognitive Research: Principles and... Nov 2022Face masks became prevalent across the globe as an efficient tool to stop the spread of COVID-19. A host of studies already demonstrated that masks lead to changes in...
Face masks became prevalent across the globe as an efficient tool to stop the spread of COVID-19. A host of studies already demonstrated that masks lead to changes in facial identification and emotional expression processing. These changes were documented across ages and were consistent even with the increased exposure to masked faces. Notably, mask-wearing also changes the state of the observers in regard to their own bodies and other agents. Previous research has already demonstrated a plausible association between observers' states and their perceptual behaviors. Thus, an outstanding question is whether mask-wearing would alter face recognition abilities. To address this question, we conducted a set of experiments in which participants were asked to recognize non-masked faces (Experiment 1), masked faces (Experiment 2) and novel objects (Experiment 3) while they were either masked or unmasked. Mask wearing hindered face perception abilities but did not modulate object recognition ability. Finally, we demonstrated that the decrement in face perception ability relied on wearing the mask on distinctive facial features (Experiment 4). Together, these findings reveal a novel effect of mask-wearing on face recognition. We discuss these results considering the plausible effect of somatosensory stimulation on visual processing as well as the effect of involuntary perspective taking.
Topics: Humans; Facial Recognition; COVID-19; Masks; Visual Perception
PubMed: 36380225
DOI: 10.1186/s41235-022-00444-z -
The Journal of Medical Humanities Mar 2021We have never been so aware of masks. They were in short supply in the early days of COVID-19, resulting in significant risk to health care workers. Now they are highly...
We have never been so aware of masks. They were in short supply in the early days of COVID-19, resulting in significant risk to health care workers. Now they are highly politicized with battles about mask-wearing protocols breaking out in public. Although masks have obtained a new urgency and ubiquity in the context of COVID-19, people have thought about both the literal and metaphorical role of masks in medicine for generations. In this paper, we discuss three such metaphors-the masks of objectivity, of infallibility, and of benevolence-and their powerful role in medicine. These masks can be viewed as inflexible barriers to communication, contributing to the traditional authoritarian relationship between doctor and patient and concealing the authenticity and vulnerability of physicians. COVID masks, by contrast, offer a more nuanced and morally complex metaphor for thinking about protecting people from harm, authentic and trustworthy communication, and attention to potential inequities both in and beyond medical settings. We highlight the morally relevant challenges and opportunities that masks evoke and suggest that there is much to be gained from rethinking the mask metaphor in medicine.
Topics: COVID-19; Humans; Masks; Medicine; Metaphor; Morals; SARS-CoV-2
PubMed: 33683510
DOI: 10.1007/s10912-020-09676-w -
International Journal of Environmental... Dec 2021Early in the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, many national public health authorities implemented non-pharmaceutical interventions to mitigate disease outbreaks. Panamá established...
Early in the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, many national public health authorities implemented non-pharmaceutical interventions to mitigate disease outbreaks. Panamá established mandatory mask use two months after its first documented case. Initial compliance was high, but diverse masks were used in public areas. We studied behavioral dynamics of mask use through the first two COVID-19 waves in Panama, to improve the implementation of effective, low-cost public health containment measures when populations are exposed to novel air-borne pathogens. Mask use behavior was recorded from pedestrians in four Panamanian populations (August to December 2020). We recorded facial coverings and if used, the type of mask, and gender and estimated age of the wearer. Our results showed that people were highly compliant (>95%) with mask mandates and demonstrated important population-level behaviors: (1) decreasing use of cloth masks over time, and increasing use of surgical masks; (2) mask use was 3-fold lower in suburban neighborhoods than other public areas and (3) young people were least likely to wear masks. Results help focus on highly effective, low-cost, public health interventions for managing and controlling a pandemic. Considerations of behavioral preferences for different masks, relative to pricing and availability, are essential for optimizing public health policies. Policies to increase the availability of effective masks, and behavioral nudges to increase acceptance, and to facilitate mask usage, during the ongoing SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, and for future pandemics of respiratory pathogens, are key tools, especially for nations lagging in access to expensive vaccines and pharmacological approaches.
Topics: Adolescent; COVID-19; Humans; Masks; Pandemics; Public Health; SARS-CoV-2
PubMed: 34948592
DOI: 10.3390/ijerph182412982 -
Explore (New York, N.Y.) 2021
Topics: Humans; Masks
PubMed: 34244043
DOI: 10.1016/j.explore.2021.06.005 -
Social Science & Medicine (1982) Apr 2022The current project examines how psychological reactance and conflict orientation relate to the highly politicized debate over mask-wearing in the U.S. during the...
The current project examines how psychological reactance and conflict orientation relate to the highly politicized debate over mask-wearing in the U.S. during the COVID-19 pandemic. We explore how psychological reactance and conflict orientation are related to self-reported mask-wearing, and how these same predispositions are correlated with political beliefs. We then assess how favorability towards President Trump in the context of the 2020 Election was uniquely correlated with these traits and how Trump favorability both mediated and moderated the effects of conflict orientation and psychological reactance on individuals' likelihood of wearing masks. Results from a national survey of U.S. adults from Nov-Dec 2020 suggest that Trump favorability was positively associated with trait reactance, negatively associated with conflict aversion, and negatively associated with self-reported mask-wearing. The opposite was true of favorability towards Joe Biden. Moderation analyses indicate that conflict-approaching Biden detractors were especially unlikely to report wearing masks, while mediation analyses show that political preferences significantly mediated the relationships between both psychological traits and self-reported mask-wearing. Implications for the politicization of health messaging and health behavior are discussed.
Topics: Adult; COVID-19; Humans; Masks; Pandemics; Politics; SARS-CoV-2
PubMed: 35245756
DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2022.114836