CDC does not recommend: why a mask with a valve is not suitable for protection against coronavirus
'09.05.2020'
Source: Life hacker
Such remedies can make you dangerous to others, writes Lifehacker.
Sometimes protective fabric masks are equipped with a special valve. In this case, the mask works like this: you inhale air through filters and exhale it through a one-way valve. Thus, warm air comes out from under the mask faster, it becomes easier to breathe, the mask is easier to wear, and glasses will not fog up.
However, not everyone understands that in the situation with coronavirus the same valve makes wearing a mask completely pointless.
We put on masks for two reasons.
Firstly, we hope that they will protect us from COVID-19 (however, disputes are still ongoing about the effectiveness of masks).
Secondly what more important, the mask does not allow to infect others, if we are sick and do not suspect about it.
The valve allows free passage of air as it exhales. This means that an infected person will spread particles of the virus around him in the same way as if he did not wear any protection at all.
On the subject: How to make a mask with your own hands: 3 easy ways and video instructions from the chief surgeon
US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention do not recommend use masks and respirators with valves to contain the disease, but only to protect medical personnel working in the environment of sick people. Here's what the official CDC website says:
“An N95 respirator with an exhalation valve provides the same level of protection as a respirator without a valve. The exhalation valve makes breathing easier. However, respirators with exhalation valves should not be used in situations where a sterile field must be maintained as the exhalation valve allows unfiltered exhaled air. "
Such protection can be worn in conditions of smog, dust and smoke - for example, at a construction site or factory where harmful particles are floating in the air. But the mask with the valve will not stop the spread of the virus.
