3 ms·

It doesn't seem very nuanced to me: > However, there is currently no evidence that wearing a mask (whether medical or other types) by healthy persons in the wi

It doesn't seem very nuanced to me: > However, there is currently no evidence that wearing a mask (whether medical or other types) by healthy persons in the wider community setting, including universal community masking, can prevent them from infection with respiratory viruses, including COVID-19. There is plenty of evidence that masks help. It could be argued that some is contradictory but it's not "no evidence". I guess you could argue they are correct in the asinine point that it doesn't "prevent them from infection" in every case. Ignoring that I'm not sure that makes sense grammatically, are they just trying to say that no masks provide complete protection? It's true that no single method or equipment provides complete protection. It's a layered network of protections that we need to use to lower the transmission rate. Masks are a very important layer in that system, along with hand washing, quarantines, goggles and contact tracing. Hand washing doesn't help you either if an infected person coughs into your open mouth.

macintux 6y ago
The argument to this point in the thread was about preventing transmission from the mask-wearer, which is where the more nuanced take is.
- bobbydroptables 6y ago
  The asymptomatic point goes to both directions. I don't know who I need protection from as an uninfected person and I don't know when I need to wear a mask to protect others as a potential asymptomatic carrier. Which more nuanced text are you referring to?
  - macintux 6y ago
    In addition to these factors, potential advantages of the use of mask by healthy people in the community setting include reducing potential exposure risk from infected person during the “pre-symptomatic” period and stigmatization of individuals wearing mask for source control. However, the following potential risks should be carefully taken into account in any decision-making process: • self-contamination that can occur by touching and reusing contaminated mask • depending on type of mask used, potential breathing difficulties • false sense of security, leading to potentially less adherence to other preventive measures such as physical distancing and hand hygiene • diversion of mask supplies and consequent shortage of mask for health care workers • diversion of resources from effective public health measures, such as hand hygiene Whatever approach is taken, it is important to develop a strong communication strategy to explain to the population the circumstances, criteria, and reasons for decisions. The population should receive clear instructions on what masks to wear, when and how (see mask management section), and on the importance of continuing to strictly follow all other IPC measures (e.g., hand hygiene, physical distancing, and others).

macintux 6y ago

The argument to this point in the thread was about preventing transmission from the mask-wearer, which is where the more nuanced take is.

bobbydroptables 6y ago
The asymptomatic point goes to both directions. I don't know who I need protection from as an uninfected person and I don't know when I need to wear a mask to protect others as a potential asymptomatic carrier. Which more nuanced text are you referring to?
- macintux 6y ago
  In addition to these factors, potential advantages of the use of mask by healthy people in the community setting include reducing potential exposure risk from infected person during the “pre-symptomatic” period and stigmatization of individuals wearing mask for source control. However, the following potential risks should be carefully taken into account in any decision-making process: • self-contamination that can occur by touching and reusing contaminated mask • depending on type of mask used, potential breathing difficulties • false sense of security, leading to potentially less adherence to other preventive measures such as physical distancing and hand hygiene • diversion of mask supplies and consequent shortage of mask for health care workers • diversion of resources from effective public health measures, such as hand hygiene Whatever approach is taken, it is important to develop a strong communication strategy to explain to the population the circumstances, criteria, and reasons for decisions. The population should receive clear instructions on what masks to wear, when and how (see mask management section), and on the importance of continuing to strictly follow all other IPC measures (e.g., hand hygiene, physical distancing, and others).