Author: Merentsova Anastasia
Translator: Uspanova Ainura
Copy editors: Kigbayeva Kamila, Issabayeva Madina
The Lancet published a large-scale review conducted by Canadian scientists, which collected data from 172 studies on the spread of coronavirus infection, which examined how maintaining physical distance, tissue masks and eye protection reduce the spread of viruses.
As studies have shown, maintaining a distance of more than one meter reduces the risk of infection (2.6% versus 12.8% when the distance is less than one meter from an infected person). At the same time, it is interesting that a further increase in the distance from a sick individual with each meter helps to halve the risk of transmission.
Studies on three viruses (SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2) on eye protection show that protective glasses also reduce the risk of infection: 5.5% versus 16% in the absence of protection. A similar picture is observed for masks: the risk of transmission of the virus from person to person is only 3.1% when wearing a mask from a potential recipient and 17.4% if the face is not closed.
Summing up, it is important to note the fact that the results of the work are somewhat subjective, according to the authors, based on low reliability data and give only an approximate picture of what happens when two people come in contact. Scientists note that the authorities need to solve the problem of access to masks and other face protection for all categories of the population, while the population should not forget about hygiene procedures.
Source: https://www.thelancet.com/pdfs/journals/
