hilary1617
First time at the rodeo.
- Joined
- Jan 6, 2014
- Messages
- 3,761
I have seen these mask sewing posts, but am not jumping on it. Gus had the opportunity to speak personally yesterday with a local physician. I got to ask him about these masks. He said that, to his limited knowledge, the fabric has to meet certain strict criteria. Regular fabric is questionable, since the weave is wildly different. He said they are not allowed to use these, YET.
I believe that these sewn masks will be welcomed and used, because something is better than nothing. I am just not quite convinced to start mass producing homemade masks.
I will, of course, fully commit to making them, when we get the detailed composition of the fabric.
We are considering the masks to be a container to keep a filter protected and dry and at maximum efficacy for as long as possible while the user is comfortable as possible. We are not relying on the mask itself for filtration. So, the fabric qualifications are that it must be breathable, lightweight, water resistant and durable enough to handle autoclave steam or commercial laundering. Charles is using something from the camping/hiking world that usually is deployed for stuff-sacks/hammocks/tents.
Our clinical use test resulted in the following commentary:
Summary:
- The nose piece makes a difference
- Hospitals "Level 1" (non droplet) masks were used in the pockets for filtering
- Experiment with ear piece material for comfort
"You need to know that your masks were a HIT yesterday! We loved them. The three of us working in my treatment room donned them, and couldn't get over how comfortable they were. We inserted one of the hospitals "Level 1" (non droplet) masks in the pocket for filtering, which was perfect & also helped preserve the mask supply for others since we didn't have to reuse them. My boss was also impressed & excited about the washability of them.
The nose piece was the only part that wasn't as sturdy as our work masks, but we opened up a couple of small paper clips and snuck them in for a little better contouring around our noses/faces.
Really--FABULOUS all around--and the color matches our required "Carribean blue" colored scrubs Added bonus
Thank you so much! I work with 23 other therapists, who all said that yours were the best of the homemade masks they'd seen as of yet. Thank you!!!!
<<Really appreciate the feedback on the nose pieces, do you think pipe cleaner would work better for this purpose?>>
Yes--a couple of pipe cleaners rolled around one another (maybe 2, or one long one cut in 1/2). When the nose piece is sturdy, it is super helpful for keeping the mask in place, reducing contamination risk through touching it to reposition it, & preventing exhale from steaming up eye glasses (something all 3 of us struggle with even when using the hospital provided masks). Also, the nicer ear elastic (the black one) that was on one of the ones you donated me seems to yield a better wear. "
Basic Design Approach:
Trying to make the masks into comfortable filter protector pockets - intent is to keep filter dry and effective as long as possible.
Using a breathable, lightweight, water-resistant, durable washable fabric. Filter can be a mask (as in the above clincical use case) or tight weave cotton if desired. Not relying on mask for filtration so mask fabric being optimized for filter holding and protector and user comfort.
Once a filter becomes wet, its efficacy diminishes considerably. Heavy hot fabrics lead to quickly wet filters.
Important Note:
These are not designed to replace N95s or be used in a setting requiring them (e.g. where intubation is taking place). Primary use is to protect from coughs and from face-touching. The basis for comparison is no mask at all.
Also, this is interesting. Shows how in China, the main benefit of masks was having all people wear masks in order to make sick people wear them and not spread the virus.
Interesting presentation of study of 25000 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Wuhan: https://docs.google.com/file/d/14tG...IwQC79mtoujhw_wCzJo76iufZgHTM3NLF1COUsP6LYFQ0
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