While the sales of face masks and respirators have surged worldwide, their effectiveness in protecting the wearer against an airborne virus, such as A (H1N1) is limited.
This year the Kingdom’s Ministry of Health is recommending the use of surgical masks in crowds to prevent the spread of the H1N1 virus. Moreover, it has revised its national plan for communicable diseases, under which the health minister has said that pilgrims will be required to wear face masks in order to reduce the risk of flu transmission. Moreover, certain district municipalities, apart from stepping up food safety, have placed a condition on barbers to use disposable gloves and wear a face mask.
The question, however, is what constitutes a ‘mask’ and how helpful they are in protecting against the virus. Dr. Essam Mousa, an internal medicine consultant in a hospital in Jeddah, has recommended “any kind of three-layered masks” for protection against the infection.
However, Dr. V. P. M. Mustafa, the medical director of a local polyclinic in Jeddah, said the effectiveness of masks in protecting against the infection is not ‘100 percent guaranteed’. “Because the mask does not stick to the skin, there is a gap between the mask and the skin, through which the virus can enter,” he said. The virus can still make its way through your fingers touching your nose or mouth, which may have earlier touched infected hard surfaces like door handles, food counters and supermarket trolleys.
While not recommending the general public to wear masks, the US Center for Disease Control (CDC) says the effectiveness of respirators and facemasks in preventing the transmission of A(H1N1) or seasonal influenza in various settings is not reliably known. The CDC also says that the use of a facemask or respirator (e.g. N95) is more likely to be of benefit if used as early as possible when exposed to an ill person and when the facemask or respirator is used consistently. For more read here.
One of the most heart- wrenching experiences parents can go through is to see their children sick or in pain. It started with my daughter running a mild fever that we did not take too seriously. Right away I made Aya, our seven-year old-daughter get comfortable in bed with lots of rest and quiet time. We gave her the usual remedies: fever medication, fluids, chicken broth, and vegetable soups.
At around two A.M. the next morning, when the whole house was asleep, I was awakened by the sound of Aya vomiting. When we rushed to her side to hold her and clean her up I noticed that her body was extremely hot. I immediately gave her fever medication but she vomited that too. My husband bought suppositories from the nearest pharmacy to give her and we rubbed her forehead and limbs with cold, wet towels.
The next day Aya kept vomiting and I was afraid she would get dehydrated so I took her to the hospital. The doctor advised that I continue giving her Tylenol suppositories and additional suppositories to stop the vomiting and to run a stool analysis to detect any intestinal bacteria or parasites. At home we continued with the prescribed treatments but she was just getting worse. She was exhausted and her fever persisted even after we had given her two suppositories to bring it down.
I took her back to the same hospital the following day with her lab results. The doctor said her stool analysis test was completely fine and they could not detect any intestinal infection. When he checked her and found that she had nasal congestion and a sore throat he told me to go the main lab and get an A (H1N1) - or swine flu - test done.
When I heard that my heart skipped a beat. A thousand thoughts raced through my mind as I started blaming myself and questioning where I took my children. I let them go to the beach and play and swim, I took them to a pet store. Could she have caught something from there? The doctor told me not to worry and to take the test to be on the safe side. For more read here.
Keep hard surfaces clean, advises visiting A(H1N1) researcher.
Claiming a total of seven victims to date, the death toll of swine flu in the Kingdom has reached an all-time high in comparison with the rest of the Middle East. Strategies to curb this pandemic are being introduced every day by the authorities. The “Infection Control Lecture on Swine Flu”, organized at the New Jeddah Clinic Hospital on Wednesday, was therefore timely and offered an insight into the world of medical professionals that are on the frontline of the anti-swine flu movement.
Dr. Mani Srinivasan is a prominent medical personality in the US, who has been working extensively with the swine flu research team. He delivered a simple yet effective presentation on the phenomenon of swine flu, focusing mainly on its vaccine and treatment.
Symptoms and contagion
The symptoms of swine flu, Dr. Srinivasan indicated, are similar to the regular flu or cold. These include a scratchy throat, runny nose, fever, body ache, and in rare cases, diarrhea, and these normally last from five to seven days, on average. He explained that the swine flu virus spreads in the same way as ordinary colds as the mode of transmission is droplets.
So if someone sneezes or coughs without covering, the virus can infect anyone within a three-foot radius. He also elaborated in certain trends as far as susceptibility to infection is concerned, with pregnant women, toddler and patients suffering from chronic illnesses of the lungs, heart, kidneys or liver being the most susceptible.
Prevention is better than cure
According to Dr. Srinivasan’s research, the swine flu virus can live on hard surfaces for up to 24 hours, whereas its life period on soft surfaces is as short as 20 minutes. Therefore, it is imperative to disinfect all hard surfaces regularly including floors, wood or metal furniture, and door handles.
He also stressed on personal hygiene to avoid contracting the infection. “Either hand-rubs with alcohol or soap and water should be used on a regular basis. Currently, there are no studies to show which method is better,” he explained.
Hand sanitizers are an alternate to soap and water where these facilities are unavailable, and he added that all dirty tissues must be disposed immediately after use. For more read here. 
While the sales of face masks and respirators have surged worldwide, their effectiveness in protecting the wearer against an airborne virus, such as A (H1N1) is limited.
