SynthesisTranslational psychiatry2022
Efficacy and practice of facemask use in general population: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Translational psychiatry, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 25 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled 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.
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.
Who cites it
25 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 51 citations in OpenAlex.
- The filtration performance of fabrics against particles of viral size: a systematic review.BMC infectious diseases · 2026Pooled it
- Adherence to mask-wearing and its impact on the incidence and deaths of viral respiratory infectious diseases: a systematic review, meta-analysis and modelling study.BMJ global health · 2025Pooled it
- Influence of short-term face mask wear on semiautomatically measured tear film parameters in dry eye patients and healthy volunteers.Graefe's archive for clinical and experimental ophthalmology = Albrecht von Graefes Archiv fur klinische und experimentelle Ophthalmologie · 2023Trial
- Friend or foe: Face masks in patients with COPD at high altitude.Physiological reports · 2026Review
- How facemasks shape trust in social interactions.PloS one · 2025Article
- Epidemiological impact of revoking mask-wearing recommendation on COVID-19 transmission in Tokyo, Japan.Infectious Disease Modelling · 2024Article
- Reevaluating Mask Effectiveness: Insights From Evidence-Based Medicine and Clinical Trials.Cureus · 2024Review
- Article
- Public perspectives on COVID-19 public health and social measures in Japan and the United Kingdom: a qualitative study.BMC public health · 2024Article
- A Reduction in the Number of Hospitalized Cases of Acute Meningitis during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Japan.Internal medicine (Tokyo, Japan) · 2024Article
- Reconciling the efficacy and effectiveness of masking on epidemic outcomes.Journal of the Royal Society, Interface · 2024Article
- Recommendations and guidelines of integrative medicine for COVID-19 care: The APEC project outcome.Integrative medicine research · 2024Article
- Observed face mask use outside retail chain stores during the COVID-19 pandemic in two cities in the state of Idaho, USA.Journal of community health · 2024Article
- Article
- Impact of mask wearing time on fluid consumption and physical activity during the COVID-19 pandemic.Frontiers in nutrition · 2024Article
- Public perception on face mask wearing during COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia: A cross sectional study.PloS one · 2024Article
- Habitual Mask Wearing as Part of COVID-19 Control in Japan: An Assessment Using the Self-Report Habit Index.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Association between face mask use and risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection: Cross-sectional study.Epidemiology and infection · 2023Article
- Epidemiology, clinical presentation, pathophysiology, and management of long COVID: an update.Molecular psychiatry · 2023Review
- An insight overview on COVID-19 mRNA vaccines: Advantageous, pharmacology, mechanism of action, and prospective considerations.International immunopharmacology · 2023Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
22 authors at 6 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
Abstract
In recent decades, respiratory infections, including SARS, HINI and the currently spreading COVID-19, caused by various viruses such as influenza and coronavirus have seriously threatened human health. It has generated inconsistent recommendations on the mandatory use of facemasks across countries on a population level due to insufficient evidence on the efficacy of facemask use among the general population. This meta-analysis aimed to explore (1) the efficacy of facemask use on preventing respiratory infections, and (2) the perceptions, intentions, and practice about facemask use among the general population worldwide. We searched PubMed, MEDLINE, Web of Science, Cochrane, bioRxiv, and medRxiv databases since inception to August 17, 2020. From 21,341 records identified, eight RCTs on facemask in preventing infections and 78 studies on perception, intention, and practice of facemask use among the general population were included in the analysis. The meta-analysis of RCTs found a significant protective effect of facemask intervention (OR = 0.84; 95% CI = 0.71-0.99; I
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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.