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Addressing the corona virus pandemic: will a novel filtered eye mask help?
David Douglas1, Robert Douglas2
1Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA; Douglas Labs, Inc., Winter Park, FL, USA.
Objective:
Non-hermetically sealed eye protection does not fully protect the eyes from airborne particles. Hermetically sealed eye protection fully protects the eyes from particles, but tends to fog up, rendering it unusable. This study aimed to build and test a filtered eye mask (FEM) to protect the eyes from airborne particles, while being usable without excessive fog build up.
Methods:
The steps performed to build the FEM were described. A hermetically-sealed standard eye mask (SEM) and an FEM were examined at 1-minute, 5-minute and 60-minute periods for performance metrics relating to fog.
Results:
The SEM showed minimal fog at 1minute, lots of fog at 5minutes and was dripping with condensation at 60minutes. The FEM was clear at 1minute, 5minutes and showed minimal fog at 60minutes.
Conclusion:
An FEM may play an important role in preventing novel coronavirus (COVID-19) exposure by protecting the eyes from airborne particles and preventing fog, rendering it usable. Further research is strongly recommended.
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