Rationale Medical masks are commonly used by sick individuals with influenza-like illness
(ILI) to prevent spread of infections to others, but clinical efficacy data are absent. Objective …

Many countries are stockpiling face masks for use as a nonpharmaceutical intervention to
control virus transmission during an influenza pandemic. We conducted a prospective …

Background Facemasks and respirators have been stockpiled during pandemic
preparedness. However, data on their effectiveness for limiting transmission are scarce. We …

Objective To determine the effect of mask use on viral respiratory infection risk. Data sources
MEDLINE and the Cochrane Library. Study selection Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) …

Background. During the influenza A (H1N1) pandemic, antiviral prescribing was limited,
vaccines were not available early, and the effectiveness of nonpharmaceutical interventions …

Objective We aimed to examine the efficacy of medical masks and respirators in protecting
against respiratory infections using pooled data from two homogenous randomised control …

Objectives To examine the use of face mask intervention in mitigating the risk of spreading
respiratory infections and whether the effect of face mask intervention differs in different …

Editor9s Note The authors of this article, published in 2015, have written a response to their
work in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. We urge our readers to consider the response …

BackgroundGovernments are preparing for a potential influenza pandemic. Therefore they
need data to assess the possible impact of interventions. Face-masks worn by the general …

OBJECTIVES: To assess if a knowledge gap exists in the correct use of face masks, and to
explore the correlations between knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding the use of …