2009/02/01 by C. Raina MacIntyre, Simon Cauchemez, Dominic E. Dwyer +8 · 1 citation
Mathematics · Medicine · #COVID-19 epidemiological studies #Clinical trial #Cluster (spacecraft) #Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) #Disease #Environmental health #Face masks #Infection Control and Ventilation #Infection control #Infectious disease (medical specialty) #Influenza-like illness #Intensive care medicine #Internal medicine #Medicine #Pandemic #Prospective cohort study #Psychological intervention #Randomized controlled trial #Respiratory illness #Respiratory system #Transmission (telecommunications) #Viral Infections and Outbreaks Research #Virology #Virus
paper · pdf · doi:10.3201/eid1502.081166
openalex publication_date 2009/02/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/31
Many countries are stockpiling face masks for use as a nonpharmaceutical intervention to control virus transmission during an infl uenza pandemic. We conducted a prospective cluster-randomized trial comparing surgical masks, non-fi ttested P2 masks, and no masks in prevention of infl uenzalike illness (ILI) in households. Mask use adherence was self-reported. During the 2006 and 2007 winter seasons, 286 exposed adults from 143 households who had been exposed to a child with clinical respiratory illness were recruited. We found that adherence to mask use signifi cantly reduced the risk for ILI-associated infection, but <50% of participants wore masks most of the time. We concluded that household use of face masks is associated with low adherence and is ineffective for controlling seasonal respiratory disease. However, during a severe pandemic when use of face masks might be greater, pandemic transmission in households could be reduced.