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posted by Fnord666 on Monday July 27 2020, @03:01PM   Printer-friendly
from the and-they-need-to-actually-fit dept.

Home-made face masks likely need at least 2 layers to curb COVID-19 spread:

Home-made cloth face masks likely need a minimum of two layers, and preferably three, to prevent the dispersal of viral droplets from the nose and mouth that are associated with the spread of COVID-19, indicates a video case study published online in the journal Thorax.

[...] A team of Australian researchers therefore compared the effectiveness of single and double-layer cloth face coverings (175 g/m² cotton fabric, with a thread count of 170/ inch) with a 3-ply surgical face mask (Bao Thach) at reducing droplet spread.

[...] The video recording showed that the 3-ply surgical face mask was the most effective at reducing airborne droplet dispersal, although even a single layer cloth face covering reduced the droplet spread from speaking.

But a double layer covering was better than a single layer in reducing the droplet spread from coughing and sneezing, the recording showed.

This is just one case, added to which several other factors contribute to the effectiveness of cloth face masks, note the researchers. These include the type of material used, design and fit, as well as the frequency of washing.

Nevertheless, based on their observations, a home made cloth mask with at least two layers is preferable to a single layer mask, they say, adding: "Guidelines on home-made cloth masks should stipulate multiple layers."

And they emphasise: "There is a need for more evidence to inform safer cloth mask design, and countries should ensure adequate manufacturing or procurement of surgical masks."

Journal Reference:
Prateek Bahl, Shovon Bhattacharjee, Charitha de Silva, et al. Face coverings and mask to minimise droplet dispersion and aerosolisation: a video case study [$], Thorax (DOI: 10.1136/thoraxjnl-2020-215748)


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  • (Score: 4, Touché) by Tork on Monday July 27 2020, @04:03PM (3 children)

    by Tork (3914) Subscriber Badge on Monday July 27 2020, @04:03PM (#1027149)

    Are we going to get another "if you don't wear a mask even walking outdoors in the park with nobody around you're going to die or kill everybody else?"

    If you truly think that's in any way a valid rebuttal then I strongly advise that you never complain about the next round of lockdowns that are coming.

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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday July 27 2020, @08:35PM (2 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday July 27 2020, @08:35PM (#1027292)

    If they keep up their current behavior, there is a good chance they won't have to worry about being around long enough to complain about the lockdowns.

    • (Score: 2) by HiThere on Monday July 27 2020, @11:18PM (1 child)

      by HiThere (866) Subscriber Badge on Monday July 27 2020, @11:18PM (#1027380) Journal

      No. This disease doesn't have that high a fatality rate. It's only around 1% or 2% depending on what group of the population you're in. I'm probably up around 4% being elderly, male, diabetic, and overweight...so I'm in several relatively independent high risk groups. But it's still true that if I get COVID I'll probably not find it that bad.

      OTOH, an alarming precentage (what %? Nobodies talking.) of people who survive COVID do so with possibly permanent damage. They also aren't saying what damage really is permanent rather than just persisting for a couple of weeks. (The study I say only lasted for a couple of weeks after "recovery".) I suspect that the data hasn't been collected. (The study I saw only counted blatantly obvious problems. It didn't, e.g., measure irrecoverable kidney damage which would be unobvious unless it was severe enough that it caused immediate problems. But it's a known result of severe COVID cases, usually subsumed under multi-organ injuries. The question is, do milder cases cause a milder case of the same thing. Liver damage can usually be recovered from. Kidney damage, often not...but your initial provision is sightly more than twice what you're expected to need.)

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      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 28 2020, @06:53AM

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 28 2020, @06:53AM (#1027519)

        Holy crap Batman, I have a new theory!! This virus was engineered by the PCC to destroy livers and kidneys so that they could sell more Uigher organs!!