Do Medical Masks Protect Against Colds and Flu?

Wearing a medical mask isn’t a useless effort, but it comes with nuances.

Medical masks are commonly linked to preventing the flu and acute respiratory viral infections (ARVI). These respiratory infections spread through airborne droplets. At first glance, masks appear to serve as a barrier to help prevent illness. However, the reality is more complex.

Who Do Medical Masks Actually Protect?

Healthcare professionals wear masks primarily to protect patients from bacteria and viruses that may reside in the respiratory tracts and mouths of medical staff, just as in any person. This is a standard precaution during examinations if the doctor is ill, as well as during surgeries or procedures requiring sterile conditions.

When talking, coughing, or sneezing, droplets containing microorganisms are expelled into the air. Masks made with water-repellent materials (like surgical masks) can also shield medical staff from patient biological fluids contacting their skin or mucous membranes of the mouth and nose.

However, masks offer limited protection to the wearer’s own respiratory system and thus are not considered personal respiratory protective devices. This is because masks do not fit tightly to the face, allowing contaminated air to enter through gaps, bypassing the filter material.

Research by the Nizhny Novgorod Institute of Hygiene and Occupational Pathology in Russia found that aerosol penetration through medical masks exceeds 34%, whereas even the weakest certified respiratory protective equipment should not exceed 22% penetration.

For maximum protection, a mask must fully cover the face. Medical masks, however, are typically half masks (covering mouth, nose, and chin) or quarter masks (covering only mouth and nose). Their main function is to reduce the release of infectious agents from the wearer’s respiratory system into the environment, thereby preventing transmission to others.

When Masks Are Ineffective

If the eyes remain unprotected, masks do not prevent certain infections. It is proven that the flu virus can infect the body through the conjunctiva of the eye and then travel via the nasolacrimal ducts (anatomical channels connecting the eyes and nose) to the nasal mucosa, causing typical flu symptoms.

Some pathogens spread when an infected person contaminates surfaces by talking, sneezing, or coughing. Transmission also occurs if a patient touches their nose or mouth (adjusting the mask) and then touches objects around them. A healthy person may then touch these contaminated surfaces and subsequently touch their own eyes, mouth, or nose. Frequent hand washing with soap or using alcohol-based sanitizers significantly reduces infection risk.

When Masks Work

Masks are effective when used as part of a broader prevention strategy. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that healthcare workers place a surgical mask on patients as soon as infection symptoms are detected and isolate them in a separate room. Caregivers should wear gloves, gowns, and either a face shield with a mask or a mask combined with protective goggles for their own safety.

Face shields combined with masks provide enhanced protection.

Mask usage guidelines specify a recommended wearing time, usually not exceeding two hours. Prolonged use is discouraged. Smoking, eating, or drinking while lowering the mask negates its protective effect.

If a mask becomes damp, it should be replaced immediately. After changing a mask, hands must be thoroughly washed with soap or sanitized with an alcohol-based gel.

Conclusion

The CDC does not endorse medical masks as standalone protection against flu infection. Wearing a mask should not be the sole preventive measure. Although masks reduce the risk of infection, they do not provide complete protection. Only when combined with vaccination, rigorous hand hygiene, and quarantine measures can masks significantly limit the spread of infection.

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