Do masks really work?

[grnamin]

Does the mask you are wearing to guard against the chinese virus really work? Try this... seal the mask material around your mouth with your fingers and see if you can breath in and out normally. Now remove your fingers and breath. Think path of least resistance. Based on my own tests, the air I'm inhaling and exhaling isn't being filtered by the mask. At best, the masking is only capturing the water vapor of my breath, which is one way to stem the spread of the virus. Military protective masks and respirators, on the other hand, have sufficient seals around one's face to force the air to enter through the filters and exit through a one-way valve. Wearing more than one mask or a mask with a filter won't "filter" out pathogens. What do you think?

[AndyLate]

I don't think the concept is to filter the virus, it is to reduce the distance droplets from your breath travel. The scientific consensus is that masks protect other people, not the wearer.

I agree that the non-N95 masks are pretty poor for anything except sawdust.

Andy

[prepare]

Not wearing one has worked for me.

[glocktogo]

They really only work if used in conjunction with dark sunglasses, hoodie and gloves, preferably with no logos or other unique identifying characteristics.

[SomeOtherGuy]

Suggested reading, and extensive links to research papers, at:

https://wmbriggs.com/post/32326/

https://www.sott.net/article/434796-...ion-of-Viruses

Baccam, P. et al. (2006) "Kinetics of Influenza A Virus Infection in Humans", Journal of Virology Jul 2006, 80 (15) 7590-7599; DOI: 10.1128/JVI.01623-05
Balazy et al. (2006) "Do N95 respirators provide 95% protection level against airborne viruses, and how adequate are surgical masks?", American Journal of Infection Control, Volume 34, Issue 2, March 2006, Pages 51-57. doi:10.1016/j.ajic.2005.08.018
Biggerstaff, M. et al. (2014) "Estimates of the reproduction number for seasonal, pandemic, and zoonotic influenza: a systematic review of the literature", BMC Infect Dis 14, 480 (2014).
Brooke, C. B. et al. (2013) "Most Influenza A Virions Fail To Express at Least One Essential Viral Protein", Journal of Virology Feb 2013, 87 (6) 3155-3162; DOI: 10.1128/JVI.02284-12
Coburn, B. J. et al. (2009) "Modeling influenza epidemics and pandemics: insights into the future of swine flu (H1N1)", BMC Med 7, 30.
Davies, A. et al. (2013) "Testing the Efficacy of Homemade Masks: Would They Protect in an Influenza Pandemic?", Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness, Available on CJO 2013 doi:10.1017/dmp.2013.43
Despres, V. R. et al. (2012) "Primary biological aerosol particles in the atmosphere: a review", Tellus B: Chemical and Physical Meteorology, 64:1, 15598, DOI: 10.3402/tellusb.v64i0.15598
Dowell, S. F. (2001) "Seasonal variation in host susceptibility and cycles of certain infectious diseases", Emerg Infect Dis. 2001;7(3):369-374. doi:10.3201/eid0703.010301
Hammond, G. W. et al. (1989) "Impact of Atmospheric Dispersion and Transport of Viral Aerosols on the Epidemiology of Influenza", Reviews of Infectious Diseases, Volume 11, Issue 3, May 1989, Pages 494-497,
Haas, C.N. et al. (1993) "Risk Assessment of Virus in Drinking Water", Risk Analysis, 13: 545-552. doi:10.1111/j.1539-6924.1993.tb00013.x
HealthKnowlege-UK (2020) "Charter 1a - Epidemiology: Epidemic theory (effective & basic reproduction numbers, epidemic thresholds) & techniques for analysis of infectious disease data (construction & use of epidemic curves, generation numbers, exceptional reporting & identification of significant clusters)", HealthKnowledge.org.uk, accessed on 2020-04-10.
Lai, A. C. K. et al. (2012) "Effectiveness of facemasks to reduce exposure hazards for airborne infections among general populations", J. R. Soc. Interface. 9938-948
Leung, N.H.L. et al. (2020) "Respiratory virus shedding in exhaled breath and efficacy of face masks", Nature Medicine (2020).
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Paules, C. and Subbarao, S. (2017) "Influenza", Lancet, Seminar| Volume 390, ISSUE 10095, P697-708, August 12, 2017.
Sande, van der, M. et al. (2008) "Professional and Home-Made Face Masks Reduce Exposure to Respiratory Infections among the General Population", PLoS ONE 3(7): e2618. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0002618 Shaman, J. et al. (2010) "Absolute Humidity and the Seasonal Onset of Influenza in the Continental United States", PLoS Biol 8(2): e1000316. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.1000316
Tracht, S. M. et al. (2010) "Mathematical Modeling of the Effectiveness of Facemasks in Reducing the Spread of Novel Influenza A (H1N1)", PLoS ONE 5(2): e9018. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0009018
Viboud C. et al. (2010) "Preliminary Estimates of Mortality and Years of Life Lost Associated with the 2009 A/H1N1 Pandemic in the US and Comparison with Past Influenza Seasons", PLoS Curr. 2010; 2:RRN1153. Published 2010 Mar 20. doi:10.1371/currents.rrn1153
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[chuckman]

Yes, no, maybe so.

Depends on the mask, depends on the virulence, depends on the distance, so many factors to say 'yes' or 'no'.

None of the non-N95 masks do a whole lot but there are a couple compelling articles about how while they may not prevent spread significantly, they do reduce the viral load, so if you get it, it's not as bad. We also know this to be true with other diseases.

[utahjeepr]

It doesn't matter if they work or not. Mask mandates are political. Douchebag POSIC has to do "something", so he/she issues a mask mandate. Noncompliance, arguing effectivness, or any other forms of insurrection cannot be tolerated.

Comply, wear your burka, placebo is become law.

[Circle_10]

They really only work if used in conjunction with dark sunglasses, hoodie and gloves, preferably with no logos or other unique identifying characteristics.

I tend to use basic black neck gaiters myself. Are they effective at stopping transmission of Covid? I dunno, but they are effective at keeping the Karens off my back as gaiters fulfill the face-covering requirements. Having a socially acceptable excuse to conceal my identity has actually been kinda nice.

[Honu]

I tend to use basic black neck gaiters myself. Are they effective at stopping transmission of Covid? I dunno, but they are effective at keeping the Karens off my back as gaiters fulfill the face-covering requirements. Having a socially acceptable excuse to conceal my identity has actually been kinda nice.

hahahaha I have been trying to find a merino wool one for the winter that does not make my neck itch funny I can wear it in socks and thermals but they bug my face and neck ?
so I do have some more synthetic ones that work OK

agree on the points %100 works for the karens it works for I just keep it on me and it works for the sign on the door idiocy

curious what brand you have and if it breathes super easy cause ya know that means its working hahhahaha

[Circle_10]

hahahaha I have been trying to find a merino wool one for the winter that does not make my neck itch funny I can wear it in socks and thermals but they bug my face and neck ?
so I do have some more synthetic ones that work OK

agree on the points %100 works for the karens it works for I just keep it on me and it works for the sign on the door idiocy

curious what brand you have and if it breathes super easy cause ya know that means its working hahhahaha

I bought like a six pack of them off Amazon. Just some generic brand IIRC. I usually double it over my nose and mouth when I’m in public, because the material is actually pretty thin. I even bought a couple white ones too for when I want to don my schneetarn and play Simo Häyhä in the woods.

Avoiding other people as much as possible is actually my most important anti-Covid strategy. So I guess I’ve been preparing for Covid my whole life....