gn2 wrote:If two people are wearing masks and standing six feet apart they cannot infect each other.
Unfortunately that's just not the case. If the breath makes if out of the mask then the virus makes it out with it; one doesn't breath humid air into one side of a mask and have it come out the other side with 0% humidity. If you stuck a cigarette at the end of a long tube - cigarette outside - smoker inside - smoker exhales into a mask - I guarantee someone walking into a typically ventilated room will still easily be able to smell the smoke. Now consider that the virus is one hell of a lot smaller than smoke particles.
Two people wearing masks won't be able to infect each other via droplets, but that's about it -- it has minimal effect on aerosolised material. The masks we're seeing used have their origins on operating theatres; they're worn to prevent surgeon droplets getting into the incision - not to protect the surgeon. Outside two people 6 feet apart both wearing masks would have a negligible chance of passing the infection -- but completely different ballgame inside - and I suspect that that's what's catching people out. Will be more of a problem as winter hits too.
Just to really lay this one to rest I'll copy/paste from a transcript of Dr Michael Osterholm's interview on the Joe Rogan podcast.
https://www.rev.com/blog/transcripts/jo ... oronavirus
"Joe Rogan: (07:51)
Now, what can be done? What can the average person do? I see people walking around with masks on, wearing gloves. Is that nonsense?
Michael Osterholm: (07:59)
Largely, yes. First of all, let’s step back, the primary mechanism for transmission is just the respiratory route, it’s just breathing. In studies in Germany, which just have been published literally in the last 24 hours, they actually followed a group of people who had been exposed to somebody in an automobile manufacturing plant and then they had nine people that, with this exposure, he said, “if you have any symptoms at all, contact us we want to follow up with you.” And they all agreed.
Michael Osterholm: (08:25)
Well, they got infected. And so in the very first hours just feeling bad, sore throat, they went in and sampled the throats, their saliva, their nose for virus, they did blood, they did stool, they did urine. And they found that at that very moment when they first got sick, they had incredibly high levels of virus, sometimes 10000 times that we saw with SARS, in their throats. Meaning they were infectious at that point already and they hadn’t even had symptoms yet of really any nature, they weren’t coughing yet. And that’s where we’re concerned because that’s the kind of transmission… I always have said, “Trying to stop influenza virus transmission is like try to stop the wind.” We’ve never had anything successfully do that other than vaccine and we don’t have a vaccine here."
And
"Michael Osterholm: (44:20)
One of the things, people want to do something. They want to feel like they’re doing something, and so we tell them, “Wash your hands often to prevent this disease.” I feel like we’re not being really honest with the people. That the data, and we’ve looked at this very carefully, really is about just breathing air, and that’s a hard thing to stop. Keep doing the hand washing, but don’t think that that’s going to stop the disease. You asked about the masks-
Joe Rogan: (44:44)
It’s going to stop other stuff. Yes, the masks.
Michael Osterholm: (44:46)
Well, there’s two kinds. Basically, the surgical mask, which just fits over. The reason it’s called a surgical mask is because it’s loose fitting, just fits, kind of ties behind you. It was worn by surgeons so that they don’t cough or drip into your wound. It was never made to protect you from bugs coming in, so those little spaces on the sides, that’s not a problem if I’m breathing into the cloth right in front of my nose, but in terms of the air coming in on the side, they’re not effective at all. People wear them, they look like they’re doing something, they’re not."
All the countries which have had success at blocking transmission of the virus have used masks as a key part of their strategy.
Again, not so. Some have, some haven't. We haven't.
The bottom line is that if a contagious person spends any non-trivial length of time in a confined space then others inhaling their exhaled breath are going to get infected - masks or no masks. They don't do any harm - but they don't do a lot of good either. Figures I've seen suggest less than 15% effectiveness.