Institute of Materials Research and Engineering, A*STAR (Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Innovis, Singapore.
School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.
Indoor Air. 2021 Sep;31(5):1639-1644. doi: 10.1111/ina.12828. Epub 2021 Apr 20.
Facing shortages of personal protective equipment, some clinicians have advocated the use of barrier enclosures (typically mounted over the head, with and without suction) to contain aerosol emissions from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients. There is, however, little evidence for its usefulness. To test the effectiveness of such a device, we built a manikin that can expire micron-sized aerosols at flow rates close to physiological conditions. We then placed the manikin inside the enclosure and used a laser sheet to visualize the aerosol leaking out. We show that with sufficient suction, it is possible to effectively contain aerosol from the manikin, reducing aerosol exposure outside the enclosure by 99%. In contrast, a passive barrier without suction only reduces aerosol exposure by 60%.
面对个人防护设备短缺的情况，一些临床医生主张使用屏障罩（通常安装在头部，有或没有吸力）来控制 2019 年冠状病毒病（COVID-19）患者的气溶胶排放。然而，其有用性的证据很少。为了测试这种设备的有效性，我们构建了一个可以在接近生理条件的流速下使微米大小的气溶胶耗尽的人体模型。然后，我们将人体模型放在外壳内，并使用激光片来可视化泄漏的气溶胶。我们表明，通过足够的吸力，可以有效地控制来自人体模型的气溶胶，使外壳外的气溶胶暴露减少 99%。相比之下，没有吸力的被动屏障只能减少 60%的气溶胶暴露。
