After months of demands for federal health officials to update mask recommendations, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced new guidelines on Wednesday, including wearing properly fitting face masks or two masks at a time to COVID-19 pandemic.
The updated guidelines follow the publication of new research from the CDC that tested various masks in a lab setting and found evidence that combining a cloth mask over a surgical mask drastically reduces the spread of the virus to others as well as exposure to the virus itself. could reduce.
The CDC’s new recommendations advise Americans to choose masks with a nose thread that can be adjusted for a snug fit, and to use a mask fitter or brace to better seal their masks. The CDC also recommends wearing a multi-layer mask for better protection, or putting a cloth mask over a disposable medical mask.
For a better fit, it recommends tying the ear loops of the disposable mask, then tucking the extra material on the sides and pressing it flat.
The CDC says it doesn’t recommend wearing two disposable masks at the same time. And it says there is no need to combine any other mask with KN95 mask, the widely used alternative to it professional N95 masks used by health professionals and first responders.
“I want to be clear that this new scientific data released today does not change the specific recommendations about who should wear a mask or when they should wear one. But they do provide new information about why wearing a well-fitting mask. mask is so important, ”CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said during a COVID-19 White House briefing.
For the new study, CDC researchers tested combinations of multilayer fabrics and plain masks for surgical or medical procedures in a lab, simulating breathing and coughing between pairs of dummies.
When only a disposable mask was worn, only 42% of the cough drops were blocked in the experiment. Combining the disposable mask with a cloth mask on top blocked 92.5% of the particles expelled from the cough.
Combining the two masks also reduced the wearer’s “cumulative exposure” by 83% to droplets dispersed from an unmasked source, the study reported. That number rose to 96.4% if both dummies were equipped with double masks.
Center for Disease Control and Prevention
“The data in this report underscores the finding that a good fit can increase the overall efficiency of the mask. Several simple ways to improve the fit have been shown to be effective,” the researchers wrote.
The new research comes after months of pleas from supporters of the CDC to update its guidelines and also recommend the wearing of two masks, after other studies and anecdotal evidence suggested the move could curb the spread of the virus. The bureau’s top officials had refused to change their official recommendations until this new investigation was completed, although many – from President Biden to Dr. Anthony Fauci – had already been seen with two masks.
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In other countries, a handful of health authorities have instructed citizens to move away from cloth masks in favor of high filtration single-use masks. Last month, the German government made “medical masks”, such as surgical or KN95 masks, mandatory on public transport and in shops.
The CDC’s announcement stems from fears of a possible rise in new cases of more contagious virus variants are now circulating in the United States. The agency had previously predicted that the rapidly spreading B.1.1.7 strain of the virus, first identified in the UK last fall, could become the dominant strain here in March.
“We shouldn’t get desperate about that, because there are things we can do to prevent that. It’s not beyond our control to do that,” said Dr. Fauci, President Biden’s chief medical adviser on the pandemic response, Wednesday.
Contact tracing of some previous cases of the virus variants in the United States revealed that their spread was fueled by people who only didn’t wear masks and held in-person meetings, the CDC said.
“The two things we can do are some of the things Dr. Walensky just mentioned: cauterize masks, avoid congregation, keep your distance and wash your hands together when a vaccine becomes available to you, to get you vaccinated, please,” Said Dr. Fauci.