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Given the very rapid growth in recent weeks of cases of COVID-19 In our country we are witnessing a wide debate that has acquired shades of dramatic contrast. On one side there is who would like it again a prolonged block, which would destroy the economy and seriously endanger the social stability of the country, and on the other those who even oppose selective closures, which inevitably implies the collapse of the hospital system and the loss of more human lives. The government has tried to find a synthesis to face the new emergency. Available epidemiological data show that some of the measures taken, such as the closure of secondary schools, theaters and cinemas, may not contribute significantly to stopping the virus: schools, theaters and cinemas are among the safest places thanks to the controlled use of preventive measures like masks and spacing.
But how much can they really help? bezels and spacing? Three recent studies help us answer this question. A study published on October 24 in the prestigious scientific journal Nature Medicine definitively demonstrates the crucial role of the mask in containing the spread and severity of infection in the population. According to this study, the mask reduces infections due to all respiratory viruses, including Sars-Cov-2. If everyone uses it correctly, the mask could prevent 130,000 deaths in the United States between now and February 2021.
The second study, published Oct. 21 by the American Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), indicates that the highest risk of infection is from eating. It is likely that this is due to the fact that to eat and drink one is forced to remove the mask and that at the moment of coexistence one approaches and talks aloud, an element of greater risk of spreading the virus. For the same reasons, the risk of contagion tends to increase when doing sports in company and during religious functions, receptions for weddings or other rites, private parties. Contrary to expectations, an increased risk of virus transmission has not been reported. public transport, where people always wear masks and don’t normally converse out loud. These analyzes reinforce the evidence reported in previous studies that mask spacing and use are associated with a reduced viral load and a less aggressive disease even in case of infection.
The third study finally tells us that another high-risk environment is family, where close, high-intensity and long-lasting interactions take place, and where your guard tends to drop. This Korean study, taken from a recent editorial in Science (October 23), shows that a person is six times more likely to be infected by a Sars-Cov-2 positive relative than by a positive person with whom they have contact. Even close, but outside of the family environment. Consistent with these estimates, other surveys state that the majority of infections (46-66%) occur in the family.
To day what the tracking system practically bypassed and the vaccine has not yet arrived, we must learn to live with the virus defending ourselves with the tools we currently have. Based on the data we have reported, we believe that spacing and a properly used mask outside and inside the home would contribute to greatly reduce the spread of the virus, especially in large families or whose members are at high risk of contagion. The mask protects not only the fragile subjects but all family members from the risk of contagion. And if we want to eat with friends, even outside the home, we keep our distance and limit the conversation to the moments when it is possible to put the mask back on. These small sacrifices, even within the family unit, would help reduce the transmission of Covid-19, helping the national health system to resist the second wave. The result of this effort could favor the channeling of energies in the strengthening of the monitoring system, territorial health and the availability of doctors in the hospital, primary needs to which our system must respond along with distancing, the mask is our best allyand the easiest and cheapest measure available to everyone. We believe that it is necessary to further sensitize the population so that they always and correctly carry it and severely punish irregularities. By wearing the mask anywhere, we can help minimize the limitation of freedom and financial damage that results from a prolonged curfew.
October 27, 2020 (change October 27, 2020 | 22:16)
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