tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5455782214242472677.post181373759637384501..comments2024-03-14T20:55:21.709+09:00Comments on Janne In Osaka: Flu Closings Not Working As ExpectedJan Morenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06834641501438709866noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5455782214242472677.post-8046301676831396552009-06-05T13:58:10.614+09:002009-06-05T13:58:10.614+09:00LQ,
Thanks for the comment.
I saw that paper t...LQ, <br /><br />Thanks for the comment. <br /><br />I saw that paper too. Note that it tested mask use for people nursing an infected individual. That greatly increases the amount of and type of exposure over time and changes both mask effectiveness and adherence. It's not readily transferable to the situation of diffuse exposure outside.<br /><br />There was a test of mask effectiveness on television just last week. They did not test the permeability of masks, but simply how well they actually filtered air through the mask rather than around it. They had 8 volunteers don a mask, then move their heads and talk. As it turned out, an N95 mask, fitted properly by a medical professional, only protected three of the eight subjects; the other five had facial features that were irregular enough or too small (the women, especially) for the mask to fit tightly. For surgical masks, they did not catch the airflow for any single volunteer. So even adherent use is very difficult to achieve even if everybody sincerely would try.<br /><br />And that's why real-world testing is important. People do have wildly different features, and they will move about and talk wearing a mask. The real-world impact of mask wearing is minimal from a protection point of view, though worthwhile for people already infected.<br /><br />In Japan, wearing a mask doesn't hurt, especially if it calms people down. In some other societies the added sense of fear and panic that seeing medical masks can engender may well more than offset any benefit. Anyway, I'm writing a second post on this right now.Jan Morenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06834641501438709866noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5455782214242472677.post-24018786948284457852009-06-05T13:38:19.857+09:002009-06-05T13:38:19.857+09:00Hi, Janne. Thanks for your article, which has prov...Hi, Janne. Thanks for your article, which has provided me with an update (in English!) of the flu situation in Osaka. The mask issue is not quite as simple as you'd put it. Studies that'd shown masks to be ineffective against influenza are mainly conducted in:<br /><br />a) experimental settings where they got a nebulizer (highly efficient aerosol generator) to be the source -- but the human lung is not a nebulizer and generates a very different aerosol profile (e.g. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17096360)<br /><br />b) real world settings where the adherence to mask usage is low and the results are not adjusted to reflect it (e.g. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18461182)<br /><br />In other studies where adherence is taken into consideration, there is usually a beneficial effect observed with adherent use of face masks (e.g. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19193267). Also, while there is disagreement over the practical values of face mask protection, there is little doubt on the utility to reduce virus spread if the infected persons wear it. Unfortunately, even this effect is not readily demonstrated in real life probably because of the low adherence. Finally, bad practice like touching or removing the masks without washing your hands afterwards increases the risk of infection and is considered to be worse than not wearing a mask at all.<br /><br />My take on the issue is that masks can protect people from flu, but they can't protect people from themselves.LQhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05551839087995248756noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5455782214242472677.post-32731289020689203152009-05-20T13:29:00.731+09:002009-05-20T13:29:00.731+09:00The advice on masks is not mine, but that of peopl...The advice on masks is not mine, but that of people who've actually researched the matter. But as I pointed out in my previous post, preventing infection is not the only reason to wear a mask, so I'm not saying not to wear it, but be careful that you don't think you're actually protected.<br /><br />School closings is one area where experts really disagree wildly. Theoretically it helps. The problem is reality, where it turns out that the effect is pretty small, at the cost of a lot of disruption at both an individual and societal level. This disruption is not free; it has human, economic and medical costs too, and the question right now is if not some of these actions do not actually cost more than they help.<br /><br />It is worth noting that the health departments in most other countries generally recommend against wearing masks in public (it doesn't help, and the sight will increase a sense of panic). In Japan wearing a mask is quite normal so in this case it may be a good idea simply as a security blanket; it may lessen the sense of panic instead of increasing it. <br /><br />School closings have also varied wildly from place to place, with entire school district closings at the very first case, down to only the same home room being sent home and tested if one person fall ill. This is one area where the optimal response is hard to find. But closing all schools everywhere the way Osaka is doing is almost certainly an overreaction.Jan Morenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06834641501438709866noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5455782214242472677.post-47647591943393913942009-05-20T11:42:29.895+09:002009-05-20T11:42:29.895+09:00While I agree there is no need to panic there is a...While I agree there is no need to panic there is also very little information on the situation except in Japanese or on some news sites that have their own reasons for spreading panic. <br /><br />I made a post today on my blog with some advice and hotline numbers. I sort of disagreed on your advice on masks though.<br /><br />As to Hashimoto-san, I am generally a supporter, but he was a little uninformed (advised?) in this case. He went into a meeting with the top govt. official not knowing the reasoning behind the school closures and having to embarrassingly backtrack shortly afterwards. <br /><br />I'm sure things will return to normal soon, and we can help by taking some common sense precautions.Ian Cheunghttp://livinginosaka.netnoreply@blogger.com