Evidence map›Paper›PMID 25922328›Full record

Trial reportJournal of epidemiology and global health2015

A cluster-randomised controlled trial to test the efficacy of facemasks in preventing respiratory viral infection among Hajj pilgrims.

Mandy Wang, Osamah Barasheed, Harunor Rashid, Robert Booy, Haitham El Bashir, Elizabeth Haworth, Iman Ridda, Edward C Holmes, Dominic E Dwyer, Jonathan Nguyen-Van-Tam and 2 more

Open access · goldAbstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Journal of epidemiology and global health, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 22 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
22citing papers in PubMed, 5 pooled it
3.5field-weighted citation impact, top 8% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

22 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 37 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. Pooled it
  4. Uptake and effectiveness of facemask against respiratory infections at mass gatherings: a systematic review.International journal of infectious diseases : IJID : official publication of the International Society for Infectious Diseases · 2016
    Pooled it
  5. Pooled it
  6. Trial
  7. Trial
  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. Review
  11. Article
  12. Review
  13. Community use of face masks and similar barriers to prevent respiratory illness such as COVID-19: a rapid scoping review.Euro surveillance : bulletin Europeen sur les maladies transmissibles = European communicable disease bulletin · 2020
    Article
  14. Preventive Efficacy of Dried Lime (Galen medical journal · 2020
    Article
  15. Observational
  16. Article
  17. Article
  18. Article
  19. Article
  20. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

12 authors at 6 institutions in 4 countries.

Mandy WangNational Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance (NCIRS), The Children's Hospital at Westmead, NSW, Australia.
Osamah BarasheedNational Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance (NCIRS), The Children's Hospital at Westmead, NSW, Australia. Electronic address: osamah.barasheed@health.nsw.gov.au.
Harunor RashidNational Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance (NCIRS), The Children's Hospital at Westmead, NSW, Australia.
Robert BooyNational Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance (NCIRS), The Children's Hospital at Westmead, NSW, Australia; Marie Bashir Institute for Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, School of Biological Sciences and Sydney Medical School, University of Sydney, Australia.
Haitham El BashirHamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.
Elizabeth HaworthMenzies Research Institute Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
Iman RiddaNational Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance (NCIRS), The Children's Hospital at Westmead, NSW, Australia.
Edward C HolmesMarie Bashir Institute for Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, School of Biological Sciences and Sydney Medical School, University of Sydney, Australia.
Dominic E DwyerMarie Bashir Institute for Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, School of Biological Sciences and Sydney Medical School, University of Sydney, Australia; Centre for Infectious Diseases and Microbiology Laboratory Services (CIDMLS), Westmead Hospital, NSW, Australia.
Jonathan Nguyen-Van-TamDivision of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Nottingham (World Health Organization Collaborating Centre for Pandemic Influenza and Research), UK.
Ziad A MemishMinistry of Health and College of Medicine, Alfaisal University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Leon HeronNational Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance (NCIRS), The Children's Hospital at Westmead, NSW, Australia.
Children's Hospital at Westmead · AUThe University of Sydney · AUHamad Medical Corporation · QAMinistry of Health · SANational Centre for Immunisation Research & Surveillance · AUUniversity of Nottingham · GB

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundCost-effective interventions are needed to control the transmission of viral respiratory tract infections (RTIs) in mass gatherings. Facemasks are a promising preventive measure, however, previous studies on the efficacy of facemasks have been inconclusive. This study proposes a large-scale facemask trial during the Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia and presents this protocol to illustrate its feasibility and to promote both collaboration with other research groups and additional relevant studies. METHODS/

designA cluster-randomised controlled trial is being conducted to test the efficacy of standard facemasks in preventing symptomatic and proven viral RTIs among pilgrims during the Hajj season in Mina, Mecca, Saudi Arabia. The trial will compare the 'supervised use of facemasks' versus 'standard measures' among pilgrims over several Hajj seasons. Cluster-randomisation will be done by accommodation tents with a 1:1 ratio. For the intervention tents, free facemasks will be provided to be worn consistently for 7days. Data on flu-like symptoms and mask use will be recorded in diaries. Nasal samples will be collected from symptomatic recruits and tested for nucleic acid of respiratory viruses. Data obtained from questionnaires, diaries and laboratory tests will be analysed to examine whether mask use significantly reduces the frequency of laboratory-confirmed respiratory viral infection and syndromic RTI as primary outcomes.

conclusionsThis trial will provide valuable evidence on the efficacy of standard facemask use in preventing viral respiratory tract infections at mass gatherings. This study is registered at the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ANZCTR), ACTRN: ACTRN12613001018707 (http://www.anzctr.org.au).

Indexed as

IslamMasksFemaleHumansInfluenza, HumanMaleSaudi ArabiaTravelFacemaskHajj pilgrimageInfluenzaMiddle East respiratory syndrome coronavirusViral respiratory tract infection

Identifiers

PMID25922328
PMCPMC7103985
OpenAlexW2046957836

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.