Do Masks Work? Cochrane Review

A 324-page Cochrane Review (considered the gold standard” of evidence-based medicine) has found that surgical masks are pretty much useless when it comes to stopping the spread of an airborne virus, at least, with current evidence. It states, “Wearing masks in the community probably makes little or no difference to the outcome of influenza‐like illness compared to not wearing masks”. Also, “There were no clear differences between the use of medical/surgical masks compared with N95/P2 respirators in healthcare workers when used in routine care to reduce respiratory viral infection”. Hand hygiene is good, but we knew that like 100 years ago. Detractors, such as The Conversation, insist that, “Yes, masks reduce the risk of spreading viruses, despite a review saying they don’t”, pointing out the reason surgical masks and N95 masks are equally ineffective is because people aren’t wearing them all the time. It’s your fault that they don’t work. It’s funny, in countries like China and Japan where people wore them all the time, they still had massive amounts of viral spread. Strange!

COCHRANE REVIEW
Physical interventions to interrupt or reduce the spread of respiratory viruses
https://www.cochranelibrary.com/cdsr/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD006207.pub6/full

#Shorts