Subject: Update on SARS
Hi Folks,
A friend of mine from HK received this from his colleague who is a pharmacist,
this pharmacist sent out the following message after attending a talk on SARS
last night.
Regards,
Anita
-----Original Message-----
Hi my dear friend,
I attended a talk organized especially for our community pharmacists tonight.
Speakers included pharmacist in PWH, QEH, KWH and a nurse specialized in the
control of transmitting disease. The talk is very informative and therefore, I
want to share with you all.
SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) is transmitted by droplets (>5 micro)
but NOT by airborne droplets (<5 micro). This means that it can only be
transmitted if the patient coughs,
speaks out loud etc which can force the droplets out thru the mouth in 3 feet
area.
In that case, we can wear masks to protect ourselves. So what kind of mask
should we use? Most believe that 3M N95 8210 mask is the most effective one.
yep, it can filter up to 0.3 micro particles, definitely is useful for SARS
(as it is 5 micro)but the surgical masks (green/blue in color) can also filter
5 micro particles. Therefore, it is recommended to use surgical mask which is
proved to be effective and much cheaper.
Besides, there are some drawbacks in using the N95 type.
It is not recommended for those who have asthma, breathing problems and
pregnant woman. As some of you who have used that before may know, the
breathing resistance is very large. You may feel uncomfortable and will use
your hand to adjust it from time to time. In this way, you will contaminate
your hand with the virus which may be present on the surface of the mask.
The nurse told us this may be the reason why HO SIU WAI has contacted the
disease. He wore a N95 mask when he visited 8A ward on that day, he felt very
uncomfortable and used his hand to touch the mask, finally he is infected.
Some important points should be noted when wearing masks.
First, wash your hands thoroughly with detergent. It's better to scratch your
hands a little bit to wash off the virus as they can be removed by physical
friction.
Carefully identify the external and internal surface of the mask. The colored
face should be exposed. It is water-resistant, you can test it by adding a
water droplet, it won't diffuse.
Do not touch the mask after you have put it on, the exposed part may contain
virus.
Do not use it for a while and then take a rest by removing it and then put it
on again, in other words, it can't be reused.
Use it only when necessary or with yr common sense. e.g. It's no use to wear
one at home when there're no infected or suspected patient at home.
One important thing to note is all the masks are designed for ADULTS only.
That means that even children can use it, it may not fit well. Therefore,
parents should make sure their children feel comfortable in using masks.
If the child find it hard to breath or feel dizzy etc, he should not use it.
The paper masks with only two layers of paper is NOT useful. It will get
dampened by droplets and can actually transmit the virus.
The nurse told us that there're only 3 diseases, Tuberculosis (TB), Measles,
Chickenpox which are transmitted by airborne droplets (AIR). In that case, N95
should be used. 95 means 95 % filtration of air particles. The company said
that they use 0.3 micro particles to test the quality of the masks.
N95 standard is set by the States in 1996. For those who wear this kind of
masks, they need to past very stringent tests to make sure they can fit the
masks correctly. ( e.g. 25 minutes breathing test)
This is something what I have learnt tonight. It's very important information
that I, as a community pharmacist, have the responsibility to pass on to the
public.
I hope that it can be helpful to you all.
Hi Folks,
A friend of mine from HK received this from his colleague who is a pharmacist,
this pharmacist sent out the following message after attending a talk on SARS
last night.
Regards,
Anita
-----Original Message-----
Hi my dear friend,
I attended a talk organized especially for our community pharmacists tonight.
Speakers included pharmacist in PWH, QEH, KWH and a nurse specialized in the
control of transmitting disease. The talk is very informative and therefore, I
want to share with you all.
SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) is transmitted by droplets (>5 micro)
but NOT by airborne droplets (<5 micro). This means that it can only be
transmitted if the patient coughs,
speaks out loud etc which can force the droplets out thru the mouth in 3 feet
area.
In that case, we can wear masks to protect ourselves. So what kind of mask
should we use? Most believe that 3M N95 8210 mask is the most effective one.
yep, it can filter up to 0.3 micro particles, definitely is useful for SARS
(as it is 5 micro)but the surgical masks (green/blue in color) can also filter
5 micro particles. Therefore, it is recommended to use surgical mask which is
proved to be effective and much cheaper.
Besides, there are some drawbacks in using the N95 type.
It is not recommended for those who have asthma, breathing problems and
pregnant woman. As some of you who have used that before may know, the
breathing resistance is very large. You may feel uncomfortable and will use
your hand to adjust it from time to time. In this way, you will contaminate
your hand with the virus which may be present on the surface of the mask.
The nurse told us this may be the reason why HO SIU WAI has contacted the
disease. He wore a N95 mask when he visited 8A ward on that day, he felt very
uncomfortable and used his hand to touch the mask, finally he is infected.
Some important points should be noted when wearing masks.
First, wash your hands thoroughly with detergent. It's better to scratch your
hands a little bit to wash off the virus as they can be removed by physical
friction.
Carefully identify the external and internal surface of the mask. The colored
face should be exposed. It is water-resistant, you can test it by adding a
water droplet, it won't diffuse.
Do not touch the mask after you have put it on, the exposed part may contain
virus.
Do not use it for a while and then take a rest by removing it and then put it
on again, in other words, it can't be reused.
Use it only when necessary or with yr common sense. e.g. It's no use to wear
one at home when there're no infected or suspected patient at home.
One important thing to note is all the masks are designed for ADULTS only.
That means that even children can use it, it may not fit well. Therefore,
parents should make sure their children feel comfortable in using masks.
If the child find it hard to breath or feel dizzy etc, he should not use it.
The paper masks with only two layers of paper is NOT useful. It will get
dampened by droplets and can actually transmit the virus.
The nurse told us that there're only 3 diseases, Tuberculosis (TB), Measles,
Chickenpox which are transmitted by airborne droplets (AIR). In that case, N95
should be used. 95 means 95 % filtration of air particles. The company said
that they use 0.3 micro particles to test the quality of the masks.
N95 standard is set by the States in 1996. For those who wear this kind of
masks, they need to past very stringent tests to make sure they can fit the
masks correctly. ( e.g. 25 minutes breathing test)
This is something what I have learnt tonight. It's very important information
that I, as a community pharmacist, have the responsibility to pass on to the
public.
I hope that it can be helpful to you all.
