FDA Updates Respirator Guidance as Supply Increases
With an increased supply and availability of respirators, the FDA has updated its recommendation for respirators, advising facilities to transition away from crisis capacity strategies, including the use of decontamination and bioburden systems
The coronavirus, while not the flu, does cause flu-like symptoms in those who have contracted it. Health officials believe the virus was initially transmitted from animals to humans, but that human-to-human transmission of the illness is now occurring.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends Disposable Surgical face masks or Face covers for everyone now.
Health officials are concerned the rapid spread of the Corona virus could mimic the outbreak of the SARS virus in the early 2000's, during which many people also wore Disposable Face masks for protection.
Following the SARS outbreak, which also originated in China, researchers in Australia tested data that suggested transmission of the viral respiratory infection was significantly reduced with the use of Disposable face masks as well as other infection control measures.
The study, published in the International Journal of Infectious Diseases in 2008, found that Disposable Face masks were 80% effective in protecting against clinical influenza-like illness when worn consistently. There wasn't much difference between the two types of Face masks tested — P2 face masks and Disposable surgical Face masks — according to the study. So taking steps to clean everything you touch with Disinfectant and wearing Disposable Surgical Face masks will help prevent the spread of any virus.
Right now in the USA and in China . there is a run on Disposable Triple Layer Face masks. People and Hospitals are buying up all the face masks they can get. China who makes the Disposable face masks are already running out of face masks. they are trying to source stock from around the world to send back to China and meet demand.
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Filtering facepiece respirators (FFR), which are sometimes called disposable respirators, are subject to various regulatory
standards around the world. These standards specify certain required physical properties and performance characteristics in
order for respirators to claim compliance with the particular standard. During pandemic or emergency situations, health
authorities often reference these standards when making respirator recommendations, stating, for example, that certain
populations should use an “N95 masks, FFP2 masks, or equivalent” face masks respirator.
• N95 masks (United States NIOSH-42CFR84)
• FFP2 Masks (Europe EN 149-2001)
• KN95 Masks (China GB2626-2006)
• P2 Masks (Australia/New Zealand AS/NZA 1716:2012)
• Korea 1st class (Korea KMOEL - 2017-64)
• DS (Japan JMHLW-Notification 214, 2018)
As shown in the following summary table, Face Mask respirators certified as meeting these standards can be expected to function very
similarly to one another, based on the performance requirements stated in the standards and confirmed during conformity
testing.
One notable comparison point is the flow rates specified by these standards for the inhalation and exhalation resistance
tests. Inhalation resistance testing flow rates range from 40 to 160L/min. Exhalation resistance testing flow rates range from
30 to 95 L/min. Some countries require testing to be performed at multiple flow rates, others at only the high or low end of
those ranges. Although this appears to suggest that the standards’ requirements for breathing resistance (also called “pressure
drop”) differ from each other, it’s important to understand that pressure drop across any filter will naturally be higher at
higher flow rates and lower at lower flow rates. Given typical pressure curves for respirator filters, the standards’ various
pressure drop requirements are actually quite similar.
Definitions
Filter performance – the filter is evaluated to measure the reduction in concentrations of specific aerosols in air that passes
through the filter.
Test agent - the aerosol that is generated during the filter performance test.
Total inward leakage (TIL) – the amount of a specific aerosol that enters the tested respirator facepiece via both filter
penetration and faceseal leakage, while a wearer performs a series of exercises in a test chamber.
Inward leakage (IL)– the amount of a specific aerosol that enters the tested respirator facepiece, while a wearer performs a
normal breathing for 3 minutes in a test chamber. The test aerosol size (count median diameter) is about 0.5 micro meter.
Pressure drop – the resistance air is subjected to as it moves through a medium, such as a Face Mask respirator filter.
N95 Respirators in Industrial and Health Care Settings
Most N95 respirators are manufactured for use in construction and other industrial type jobs that expose workers to dust and small particles. They are regulated by the National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory (NPPTL) in the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), which is part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
However, some N95 respirators are intended for use in a health care setting. Specifically, single-use, disposable respiratory protective devices used and worn by health care personnel during procedures to protect both the patient and health care personnel from the transfer of microorganisms, body fluids, and particulate material. These surgical N95 respirators are class II devices regulated by the FDA, under 21 CFR 878.4040, and CDC NIOSH under 42 CFR Part 84.
N95s respirators regulated under product code MSH are class II medical devices exempt from 510(k) premarket notification, unless:
The respirator is intended to prevent specific diseases or infections, or
The respirator is labeled or otherwise represented as filtering surgical smoke or plumes, filtering specific amounts of viruses or bacteria, reducing the amount of and/or killing viruses, bacteria, or fungi, or affecting allergenicity, or
The respirator contains coating technologies unrelated to filtration (e.g., to reduce and or kill microorganisms).
