ArticleScientific reports2022
On the durability of surgical masks after simulated handling and wear.
Article in Scientific reports, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers.
What it found
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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
11 citing papers in PubMed.
- Effects of Mask Reuse on the Oropharyngeal, Skin, and Mask Microbiome.The Journal of infectious diseases · 2023Trial
- Article
- Article
- One-step silver coating of polypropylene surgical mask with antibacterial and antiviral properties.Heliyon · 2024Article
- Article
- Functional Fiber Membranes with Antibacterial Properties for Face Masks.Advanced fiber materials · 2023Article
- Advanced and Smart Textiles during and after the COVID-19 Pandemic: Issues, Challenges, and Innovations.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Review
- Bacterial contamination of medical face mask wearing duration and the optimal wearing time.Frontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2023Article
- Prolonged Use of Surgical Masks and Respirators Affects the Protection and Comfort for Healthcare Workers.Materials (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Article
- Materials analysis and image-based modelling of transmissibility and strain behaviour in approved face mask microstructures.Scientific reports · 2022Article
- Evaluations of 3D-Printed Surgical Mask Tension Release Bands for Common COVID-19 Use with Biomechanics, Sensor Array System, and Finite Element Analysis.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
10 authors.
Funding
Abstract
After the spread of COVID-19, surgical masks became highly recommended to the public. They tend to be handled and used multiple times, which may impact their performance. To evaluate this risk, surgical masks of Type IIR were submitted to four simulated treatments: folding, ageing with artificial saliva or sweat and washing cycles. The air permeability, mechanical integrity, electrostatic potential, and filtration efficiency (FE) of the masks were measured to quantify possible degradation. Overall, air permeability and mechanical integrity were not affected, except after washing, which slightly degraded the filtering layers. Electrostatic potential and FE showed a strong correlation, highlighting the role of electrostatic charges on small particle filtration. A slight decrease in FE for 100 nm particles was found, from 74.4% for the reference masks to 70.6% for the mask treated in saliva for 8 h. A strong effect was observed for washed masks, resulting in FE of 46.9% (± 9.5%), comparable to that of a control group with no electrostatic charges. A dry store and reuse strategy could thus be envisaged for the public if safety in terms of viral and bacterial charge is ensured, whereas washing strongly impacts FE and is not recommended.
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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.