Over the past few months there have been conflicting reports about how much use face coverings are when it comes to preventing the spread of coronavirus. Tony McDonough reports
People wearing face coverings or masks on the street, in shops and on public transport, where they are compulsory, have become a common sight across the UK.
Over the past few months there have been conflicting reports about how much use face coverings are when it comes to preventing the spread of coronavirus. Given how minute the virus is, there was initially much scepticism about this effectiveness.
However, there is now a growing scientific consensus that covering our mouths and noses can be an effective strategy in limiting transmission of COVID-19, offering protection not so much for the wearer, but for those around them.
Last week, the chairman of the British Medical Association council, Dr Chaand Nagpaul, said masks or coverings should be worn by the public now “as a matter of course”.
He added: “For someone, not wearing a face covering, and who has the virus or is a carrier, the risk of transmitting the virus to another person close by is 70%.
“By the carrier wearing a covering, that drops to just 5%. If a carrier and healthy person both wear masks, the probability of transmitting the virus is just 1.5%.”
And new clinical research from Germany suggests a widespread wearing of face masks could cut transmission by up to 40%.
Researchers from universities in Germany and Denmark looked studied infection rates in German regions, particularly the town of Jena, where people have been obligated to wear face coverings in public, a policy that has met with some local opposition.
READ MORE: COVID-19 – why can’t we go to the gym
In conclusion, the researchers said: “Based on our findings, we calculate a rule-of-thumb measure for the relative decrease in the daily growth rate of COVID-19 cases of about 40%.
“Consider a region in which the number of COVID-19 cases increased by 10% from one day to another. This increase would have been only 6% if there had been an obligation to wear face masks. With a 10% daily increase in COVID-19, cases double within seven days; in contrast, a 6% daily increase means cases double only within 12 days.
“In summary, the introduction of mandatory face masks has slowed down the spread of COVID-19 in Germany.
“This result agrees with the findings of epidemiologists and virologists who explain that face coverings limit airflow when speaking, thereby reducing the transmission of infectious particles.”