- The UK government had decided that masks could play a significant role in stopping Covid-19.
- Masks were made mandatory in public places.
- It was not backed by scientific data.
- Are they really necessary, is a question that remained unanswered.
The scientific research evidence shows that wearing masks in the community does not significantly reduce the rates of infection, says an article published in The Spectator.
The Danmask-19 Trial
Unlike other studies looking at masks, the Danmask study was a randomised controlled trial – making it the highest quality scientific evidence. The 6000 participants were told not to wear masks, but they followed other public health measures.
50 disposable face masks
Around half of those in the trial received 50 disposable surgical face masks, which they were told to change after eight hours of use. At the end of one month, when the participants were tested, there was no statistically significant difference between those who wore masks and those who did not when it came to being infected by Covid-19.
Masks preventing the spread
1.8 per cent of those wearing masks caught Covid, compared to 2.1 per cent of the control group. As a result, it seems that any effect masks have on preventing the spread of the disease in the community is small.
Only 46% of the people wearing masks for the trial wore them correctly, adhering to the rules. But even this does not make any significant difference in the final results.
Masks and Their Efficiency
The results of the Danmask-19 trial mirror other reviews into influenza-like illnesses. Nine other trials looking at the efficacy of masks (two looking at healthcare workers and seven at community transmission) have found that masks make little or no difference to whether one gets influenza.
The only studies which have shown masks to be effective at stopping airborne diseases have been ‘observational’ – which observe the people who ordinarily use masks, rather than attempting to create a randomised control group. These trials include six studies carried out in the Far East during the SARS CoV-1 outbreak of 2003, which showed that masks can work, especially when they are used by healthcare workers and patients alongside hand-washing.
Face Masks and Covid-19
There have only been three community trials during the current pandemic comparing the use of masks with various alternatives – one in Guinea-Bissau, one in India and this latest trial in Denmark. The low number of studies suggests there is a total lack of interest from governments in pursuing evidence-based medicine.
Randomised Trials & Importance
Observational studies are prone to recall bias: in the heat of a pandemic, not very many people will recall if and when they used masks and at what distance they kept from others. This is why large, randomised trials like this most recent Danish study are so important if we want to understand the impact of measures like face masks.
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Source: The Spectator
