Influence of wearing time on efficacy of disposable surgical masks as microbial barrier

The present study evaluated the efficacy of disposable surgical masks as a microbial barrier with 95% of Bacteria Filtration Efficacy (BFE) according to the wearing time (1, 2, 4 and 6 hours). The masks showed a decrease in efficacy after a 4-hour wearing time. Este estudo propôs analisar a eficácia de barreira microbiana das máscaras cirúrgicas descartáveis com 95% de Eficácia de Filtração Bacteriana (BFE), segundo seu tempo de uso (1, 2, 4 e 6 horas). As máscaras apresentaram diminuição da eficácia de barreira a partir de 4 horas de uso.