SynthesisClinical microbiology reviews2024
Masks and respirators for prevention of respiratory infections: a state of the science review.
Synthesis in Clinical microbiology reviews, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 35 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
35 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Cost-effectiveness of preventive COVID-19 interventions: a systematic review and network meta-analysis of comparative economic evaluation studies based on real-world data.Journal of global health · 2025Pooled 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
- Article
- 'Not feeling heard' in health care: A critical review of the detrimental effects of poor-quality listening.Journal of health psychology · 2026Review
- Clinical utility and limitations of whole-genome sequencing via nanopore technology and Bayesian modeling for outbreak transmission inference.Antimicrobial resistance and infection control · 2026Article
- Article
- Uncovering the biases: why the claimed mask-excess mortality link fails to hold.Lancet regional health. Americas · 2026Article
- Synthesis challenges in complex evidence: A critical analysis of systematic reviews of face mask efficacy.Research synthesis methods · 2026Article
- Interaction analysis of non-bacterial respiratory pathogens during and after the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic in two cities along the eastern coast of China.Pediatric investigation · 2026Article
- Risks and benefits of face masks in children.Frontiers in pediatrics · 2026Review
- Factors influencing N95 respirator use among healthcare workers in a TB specialized hospital, Bangladesh.PloS one · 2026Article
- The lived experience of mask wearing among patients with chronic illnesses during the COVID-19 pandemic.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Review
- Protocol: a systematic review+ (SR+) to combine associative and mechanistic evidence on the efficacy of face masks in reducing transmission of respiratory diseases.Systematic reviews · 2025Article
- COVID-19 pandemic as an effect modifier on the association between elevated temperatures and emergency department visits: A case-time-series study in a large population.Environmental epidemiology (Philadelphia, Pa.) · 2025Article
- Incidence trends and epidemiology of invasive device-associated bacteremia in French nursing home residents, 2020-2024: Insights from the SPIADI Prospective Multicenter Study.European journal of clinical microbiology & infectious diseases : official publication of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology · 2025Article
- Role of Respiratory Viruses in Severe Acute Respiratory Failure.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Review
- Article
- Resist the Randomized Controlled Trials fetish: different questions require different pyramids of evidence.Canadian medical education journal · 2025Article
- Commentary: Without Values, Complexity is Reduced to Mathematics.Journal of evaluation in clinical practice · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
13 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
SUMMARYThis narrative review and meta-analysis summarizes a broad evidence base on the benefits-and also the practicalities, disbenefits, harms and personal, sociocultural and environmental impacts-of masks and masking. Our synthesis of evidence from over 100 published reviews and selected primary studies, including re-analyzing contested meta-analyses of key clinical trials, produced seven key findings. First, there is strong and consistent evidence for airborne transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and other respiratory pathogens. Second, masks are, if correctly and consistently worn, effective in reducing transmission of respiratory diseases and show a dose-response effect. Third, respirators are significantly more effective than medical or cloth masks. Fourth, mask mandates are, overall, effective in reducing community transmission of respiratory pathogens. Fifth, masks are important sociocultural symbols; non-adherence to masking is sometimes linked to political and ideological beliefs and to widely circulated mis- or disinformation. Sixth, while there is much evidence that masks are not generally harmful to the general population, masking may be relatively contraindicated in individuals with certain medical conditions, who may require exemption. Furthermore, certain groups (notably D/deaf people) are disadvantaged when others are masked. Finally, there are risks to the environment from single-use masks and respirators. We propose an agenda for future research, including improved characterization of the situations in which masking should be recommended or mandated; attention to comfort and acceptability; generalized and disability-focused communication support in settings where masks are worn; and development and testing of novel materials and designs for improved filtration, breathability, and environmental impact.
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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.