Posted on 06/27/2020 8:34:23 AM PDT by ransomnote
Yesterday’s Scientific Dogma is Today’s Discarded Fable
Introduction
The above quotation is ascribed to Justice Archie Campbell author of Canada’s SARS Commission Final Report. 1 It is a stark reminder that scientific knowledge is constantly changing as new discoveries contradict established beliefs. For at least three decades a face mask has been deemed an essential component of the personal protective equipment worn by dental personnel. A current article, “Face Mask Performance: Are You Protected” gives the impression that masks are capable of providing an acceptable level of protection from airborne pathogens. 2 Studies of recent diseases such as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and the Ebola Crisis combined with those of seasonal influenza and drug resistant tuberculosis have promoted a better understanding of how respiratory diseases are transmitted. Concurrently, with this appreciation, there have been a number of clinical investigations into the efficacy of protective devices such as face masks. This article will describe how the findings of such studies lead to a rethinking of the benefits of wearing a mask during the practice of dentistry. It will begin by describing new concepts relating to infection control especially personal protective equipment (PPE).
Trends in Infection Control
For the past three decades there has been minimal opposition to what have become seemingly established and accepted infection control recommendations. In 2009, infection control specialist Dr. D. Diekema questioned the validity of these by asking what actual, front-line hospital-based infection control experiences were available to such authoritative organization as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Occupational Safety and Health Association (OSHA) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). 3 In the same year, while commenting on guidelines for face masks, Dr. M. Rupp of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America noted that some of the practices relating to infection control that have been in place for decades, ”haven’t been subjected to the same strenuous investigation that, for instance, a new medicine might be subjected.” 4 He opined that perhaps it is the relative cheapness and apparent safety of face masks that has prevented them from undergoing the extensive studies that should be required for any quality improvement device. 4 More recently, Dr. R. MacIntyre, a prolific investigator of face masks, has forcefully stated that the historical reliance on theoretical assumptions for recommending PPEs should be replaced by rigorously acquired clinical data. 5 She noted that most studies on face masks have been based on laboratory simulated tests which quite simply have limited clinical applicability as they cannot account for such human factors as compliance, coughing and talking. 5
Covering the nose and mouth for infection control started in the early 1900s when the German physician Carl Flugge discovered that exhaled droplets could transmit tuberculosis. 4 The science regarding the aerosol transmission of infectious diseases has, for years, been based on what is now appreciated to be “very outmoded research and an overly simplistic interpretation of the data.” 6 Modern studies are employing sensitive instruments and interpretative techniques to better understand the size and distribution of potentially infectious aerosol particles. 6 Such knowledge is paramount to appreciating the limitations of face masks. Nevertheless, it is the historical understanding of droplet and airborne transmission that has driven the longstanding and continuing tradition of mask wearing among health professionals. In 2014, the nursing profession was implored to “stop using practice interventions that are based on tradition” but instead adopt protocols that are based on critical evaluations of the available evidence. 7
A December 2015 article in the National Post seems to ascribe to Dr. Gardam, Director of Infection Prevention and Control, Toronto University Health Network the quote, “I need to choose which stupid, arbitrary infection control rules I’m going to push.” 8 In a communication with the author, Dr. Gardam explained that this was not a personal belief but that it did reflect the views of some infection control practitioners. In her 2014 article, “Germs and the Pseudoscience of Quality Improvement”, Dr. K Sibert, an anaesthetist with an interest in infection control, is of the opinion that many infection control rules are indeed arbitrary, not justified by the available evidence or subjected to controlled follow-up studies, but are devised, often under pressure, to give the appearance of doing something. 9
The above illustrate the developing concerns that many infection control measures have been adopted with minimal supporting evidence. To address this fault, the authors of a 2007 New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) article eloquently argue that all safety and quality improvement recommendations must be subjected to the same rigorous testing as would any new clinical intervention. 10 Dr. R. MacIntyre, a proponent of this trend in infection control, has used her research findings to boldly state that, “it would not seem justifiable to ask healthcare workers to wear surgical masks.” 4 To understand this conclusion it is necessary to appreciate the current concepts relating to airborne transmissions.
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The taste and smell, also known as Anosmia, return within 9 days.
“Can you admit they can lessen the viral load”
Nope. The exacerbate it, actually. Nothing like a petri dish on your face to concentrate disease to ensure your lungs take in a nice helping of virus and bacteria.
There is one researcher out of Indiana University that has success killing the virus on a mask with zinc and something else creating some kind of charge
Dont recall at the moment the other substance
I saw someone selling zinc dotted masks on Etsy trying to cash in on it. I didnt look to see how they were made or details
Interesting, his GF, who I think doesnt live with him, has different symptoms
Might be a factor of their blood type since it plays a role
Also other genetics.
He will, no doubt, being documenting it all on twitter
How many illegals crammed in small living quarters with other family are living in Taiwan, Korea, Japan?
I have a mask that would probably stop it. I own an auto body shop and use a respirator when I paint. It has a heavy paper filter then a 1 inch thick activated charcoal filter with a one way neoprene exhaust. I have n95 masks in my shop to use when sanding body filler or using lacquer primers. I don't trust the 95s when spraying catalyzed urethane paint.
You are right about the mask hysteria!
Masks are good for people with bad manners relative to coughing sneezing, and respect for personal space (getting too close and talking in a way that I can feel a breeze from their mouth). I went to the store today and did not wear a mask, although it is mandated in my state. Saw other unmasked rebels.
They aren’t just having lower mortality rates, they are having lower infection rates. This in spite of being much more densely populated, and reliant on public transportation.
As of today, the death rate in the U.S. is 5.1%.
Masks only work when everyone wears them, that’s the point.
Have you been to Asia? They all live in small cramped living quarters with multi-generation families. It is vastly denser than most of the US. They also jam into trains which should be superspreading locations.
Due to? But, worldwide, despite the u.n. and who trying real hard, the death rate is still 100%. Nobody makes it out alive. Yet. :-)
I and everyone in my company must wear a mask all the day. I wear a mask all the time except in my home. It’s the law.
Wearing a surgical or cloth mask does not make a damn bit of difference to your O2 levels.
Interesting- i think the other article i read about the Israeli masks earlier stated that they created some kind of a charge in the mask too that traps the virus while antimicrobial annihilates the virus
Yup- found some info on another technology similar to the sonovia masks:
Argaman Technologies, an Israeli textile research company, claims its BioBlocX masks contain cotton and polyester fibers embedded with accelerated copper oxide particles. Similarly to Sonovia’s tech, Argaman says that when virus particles hit the mask, positive ions from the copper attach themselves to the virus and destroy its ability to replicate. The masks also include a layer of a nanofiber membrane that allegedly filters out pathogens.
https://www.wired.com/story/weird-concepts-theoretically-supercharge-mask-fabrics/
The electroceutical dressing is currently FDA cleared and commercialized by Vomaris Inc. It is made of polyester fabric printed with alternating circular metal dots of elemental silver and zinc metals that create moisture-activated microcell batteries
coo read- wrapping myself in electric fence wiring as we speak lol-
Sounds interesting though-
From the article:
“The electroceutical dressing is currently FDA cleared and commercialized by Vomaris Inc. It is made of polyester fabric printed with alternating circular metal dots of elemental silver and zinc metals that create moisture-activated microcell batteries.”
Cool- sounds all sci-fi lol- the way some folks can talk, hey could power a small city
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