All About IVFDid you look twice at the man with two masks on at the neighbourhood market? And later found a few more like him? As the second Covid-19 wave lashes the country, many are going for the double-mask approach to keep the virus away, with experts saying its “advisable” and an “established way to stop transmission”.
“One can wear a surgical mask and a cloth mask or two cloth masks. However, with N95 masks, doubling is not needed,” says Dr Rommel Tickoo, director, internal medicine department at Delhi’s Max Saket. “A double mask is advisable when a person is going to crowded places where social distancing is not possible,” he says
Must Read: Can children get Covid-19 vaccine yet?
Many masks don’t fit perfectly on the face. Wearing double masks reduces the risk of droplets from an infected person escaping through the sides while breathing in and out, say experts.
The double-masking recommendation is based on a study conducted by the US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The CDC conducted experiments to assess two ways of improving the fit of medical procedure masks — fitting a cloth mask over a medical procedure mask, and knotting the ear loops of a medical procedure mask and then tucking in and flattening the extra material close to the face. Each modification substantially improved source control and reduced wearer exposure, it found.
Read More: Coronavirus: Pregnant women can transfer antibodies to their babies, study claims
“Double masking and knotting are some of the established ways to stop transmission as it ensures a tight fit. While people may feel it impedes breathing, its regular use could ease the discomforts,” said Maharashtra Covid taskforce member Dr Shashank Joshi. Joshi recommends using a medical three-ply mask covered by a cloth mask or vise-versa for maximum protection. “Double masking can prove to be effective in crowded places, rooms where there is lack of proper ventilation or places where social distancing can be a challenge such as a local train compartment,” added Joshi added.
Wearing a double mask provides a more fool-proof protection, according to Rahul Jain, internal medicine consultant at Belle Vue Clinic in Kolkata. Often, the mask gets displaced or is not properly fitted around the nose and mouth. This may happen if the string gets loose. A second mask ensures that the cover remains firmly in place,” said Jain.
Related Topic: How parents and teachers can help children in the fight against COVID-19 infection
However, some experts feel double-masking cannot be standard strategy. “The theory of double mask has been discussed, propagated by some as a better filter to prevent the leaks. However, this cannot be recommended as a standard strategy. One good mask well-worn is good enough to offer protection,” Dr Ravindra Mehta, chief of pulmonary, critical care and interventional pulmonology, Apollo Speciality Hospitals, Bengaluru.
“There is no scientific study which proves that double masks are safer. Properly using an N-95 mask or triple layered cloth mask offers protection,” Dr V Ravi, virologist, member, Covid technical expert committee, Karnataka.
You May like:
Is double masking better? Should we double mask our children?
It has been a year now since coronavirus hit the world. Our lifestyle turned literally upside down when the pandemic started; our plans changed; our survival strategies were changed in order to survive this pandemic. One of the major steps which the Central Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) asked us to make was wearing a mask. Read More:
The second phase of the Covid-19 vaccination drive started in India on Monday with over 29 lakh eligible beneficiaries registering themselves on Day 1. The second phase aims to cover ... READ MORE
NEW DELHI: The six days that it took India to administer more than one million doses of vaccines against Covid-19 makes it the fastest rollout of a million vaccine shots ... READ MORE
The Centre clarified that asymptomatic cases are those that are confirmed so by the laboratories but are not experiencing any symptoms and have oxygen saturation at room air of more ... READ MORE
Pfizer aims to seek approval from U.S and European regulators to allow emergency use of the shots starting at age 12. Pfizer announced on Wednesday that its COVID-19 vaccine is ... READ MORE