Udwadia Zarir F, Raju Reyma Sara
Department of Pulmonary Medicine, P D Hinduja National Hospital and Medical Research Centre, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India.
Lung India. 2020 Jul-Aug;37(4):323-328. doi: 10.4103/lungindia.lungindia_339_20.
The present COVID-19 pandemic, caused by the airborne SARS-CoV-2 virus, has highlighted the vital importance of appropriate personal protective equipment for all exposed health care workers. The single most important part of this armor is the N-95 mask. With the awareness that the virus is spread by both droplets and through the aerosolized route, the N-95 provides protection that a surgical mask cannot match. This timely review looks at the special advantages that an N-95 offers over a surgical mask with specific reference to the COVID-19 epidemic. It also emphasizes the crucial importance of ensuring quality masks with a proper fit. Finally, with acute scarcities of N-95 masks being reported from hospitals globally, it reviews recent literature which attempts to prolong the life of these masks with extended use, reuse and decontamination of used masks.
由空气传播的严重急性呼吸综合征冠状病毒2（SARS-CoV-2）引发的当前新冠疫情，凸显了适当的个人防护装备对于所有接触病毒的医护人员的至关重要性。这套防护装备中最重要的单品就是N95口罩。鉴于认识到该病毒通过飞沫和雾化途径传播，N95口罩提供的防护是外科口罩无法比拟的。这篇及时的综述探讨了N95口罩相对于外科口罩所具有的特殊优势，特别提及了新冠疫情。它还强调了确保佩戴合身的优质口罩的至关重要性。最后，鉴于全球各医院均报告N95口罩严重短缺，该综述审视了近期的文献，这些文献尝试通过延长使用、重复使用和对用过的口罩进行消毒来延长这些口罩的使用寿命。
