Originally published as JAMA: Don't panic! There is no difference between ordinary medical masks and N95 mask! The largest clinical trial so far has confirmed that there is no difference in the effectiveness of two common masks in preventing viral respiratory infectious diseases. The incidence figures are constantly refreshed, and all kinds of news are flying all over the sky. The fight against COVID-19 touches everyone's nerves, but at this time, there are always all kinds of specious and even absurd suggestions. Banlangen and boiled vinegar are useless, which has been officially confirmed. And that what "Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine to prevent coronavirus pneumonia" prescription, Singularity Cake asked the students, only to know that it is made up at all, if you know some Chinese medicine, you can write a level. In contrast, Singularity Cake's professional advice to relatives and friends is to wear masks, avoid going to crowded places, and avoid contact with people coming back from Wuhan. However, the next question must be: what kind of mask to wear? Is an ordinary medical mask all right? Do I have to N95 mask? What if I can't buy N95? Who let Singularity Cake be a medical student, born to popularize science + save people.. (Image: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) For the sake of friends and relatives as well as everyone, Singularity Cake is here to answer all the questions: For viral respiratory infectious diseases, including COVID-19, there is no difference between the protective effects of wearing N95 mask and medical masks, so if you can buy masks, you can wear whatever you have! Expand the full text This conclusion comes from a clinical trial conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (USCDCP) in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) in September 2019, which is the largest trial conducted in the United States, directly comparing the effect of N95 mask and medical masks on the protection of outpatient medical staff against influenza. During the four-year trial, 8.2% of medical staff who wore N95 mask contracted the flu,Full Body Disposable Coverall, compared with 7.2% of those who wore surgical masks! However, this 1% difference is not statistically significant, so the protective effect of the two masks is actually the same. In terms of a series of secondary endpoints of the trial, including the total number of acute respiratory diseases and laboratory-confirmed viral respiratory infectious diseases, there is no difference between the two masks, so again, wear whatever you have, wear whatever you buy,CE Certificate KN95 Mask, as long as you wear it! It's an exaggeration to be fully armed, but there must be basic protection. (Photo: Pixabay) Some people may ask, the experiment is not the flu, how can the conclusion be moved? In fact, on the whole, the transmission mode of viral respiratory infectious diseases is similar, mainly through droplet transmission, and a few ways with aerosol transmission, such as SARS virus. Therefore, there is little difference in the route of transmission between influenza and COVID-19, and influenza is still prevalent every year, which provides ample opportunities for clinical trials to verify. You can't do it without verification. Over the years, there has been a lot of controversy about which mask to choose to protect against viral respiratory infectious diseases. For example, in the same 2008 flu season, two studies conducted in China and the United States got diametrically opposite results. The Chinese study said that N95 mask was indeed more effective, Antivirus Disposable Mask with CE Certificate ,KN95 Mask for Epidemic Prevention and Control, while the American study said that N95 was no better than medical masks [2-3]. Who did you believe? Maybe many people will trust N95 mask more because of a better mentality of protection, but for ordinary people with low possibility of close contact, N95 mask is not comfortable to wear. In 2009, when the H1N1 flu was raging, the CDC did not recommend that non-medical personnel wear N95 mask. General medical masks are enough for ordinary people. (Image: Wikipedia) If there is no advantage in N95 mask, there is really no need to take the initiative to find suffering. The biggest difference between the CDC's trial and the previous one is that it no longer limits the time to one flu season, but spans four years from 2011 to 2015, requiring health care workers to wear masks during the 12 weeks of high incidence of respiratory infectious diseases each year. More than 2,400 ambulatory health care workers completed the trial, most of them women, making it the largest study in North America. The N95 mask evaluated in the experiment is the most common 3m mask on the market, and the contrast medical mask is also the most common medical blue mask. During this period, Singularity Cake has also noticed that many people are looking at "surgical mask" to buy, but it should be noted that the "surgical mask" often mentioned by doctors actually refers to the kind of mask that needs to be knotted at the back of the head in a different way, which is no different from the common "medical mask" in protection. Used in the operating room is more like this, the difference is that the wearing method is different. (Image: Wikipedia) When receiving patients with respiratory diseases in outpatient clinics, about 90% of the medical workers in both groups have been wearing masks in accordance with the rules and regulations. In terms of the number of cases, there were 207 cases of laboratory-confirmed influenza infection in the N95 group, compared with 193 cases in the group wearing medical masks, which was not statistically significant. For secondary end points, 2734 influenza-like symptoms, laboratory-confirmed respiratory illness, and acute or laboratory-detected respiratory tract infection in the N95 mask group and 3039 in the medical mask wearers remained similar. In the words of Professor Trish Perl of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, one of the senior authors of the paper, "Neither mask is worse than the other, which is a very important basis for future outbreaks of infectious diseases and the need for relevant institutions to recommend masks.". Considering that drugstores and e-commerce are out of stock, or even take the opportunity to raise prices, don't pick to buy N95 mask, what's the use of it. Didn't Singularity Cake also rummage through boxes and cabinets and take out the stock that was used to prevent haze before? It's better than nothing. By the way, about wearing masks correctly, Singularity Cake borrows a picture from the CDC of the United States to emphasize the correct way to wear masks again. Remember, don't wear a mask, it can only be used once, and don't touch the mask you have worn! Remember that the left is the correct way to wear it! (Image: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) It is said that Chinese and American scientists are already working together to develop a vaccine for the new coronavirus, but in the face of the enemy, it is more important to do a good job of protection. Singularity Cake also hopes that the epidemic will be over as soon as possible and everyone will celebrate the New Year safely! The editor is garrulous 1.Radonovich L J, Simberkoff M S, Bessesen M T, et al. N95 respirators vs medical masks for preventing influenza among health care personnel: a randomized clinical trial[J]. JAMA, 2019, 322(9): 824-833. 2.MacIntyre C R, Wang Q, Cauchemez S, et al. A cluster randomized clinical trial comparing fit‐tested and non‐fit‐tested N95 respirators to medical masks to prevent respiratory virus infection in health care workers[J]. Influenza and other respiratory viruses, 2011, 5(3): 170-179. 3.Loeb M, Dafoe N, Mahony J,KN95 Face Mask, et al. Surgical mask vs N95 respirator for preventing influenza among health care workers: a randomized trial[J]. JAMA, 2009, 302(17): 1865-1871. Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Author | Tan Shuo Wear a mask and wash your hands frequently. Don't go to the crowd. Return to Sohu to see more. Responsible Editor:. zjyuan-group.com