VOLUME 24 , ISSUE 9 ( September, 2020 ) > List of Articles
Citation Information : Should We or Should We Not Reuse Filtering Face Piece Masks? A Review. Indian J Crit Care Med 2020; 24 (9):857-862.
DOI: 10.5005/jp-journals-10071-23565
License: CC BY-NC 4.0
Published Online: 16-01-2020
Copyright Statement: Copyright © 2020; The Author(s).
Disposable filtering face piece respirators (FFRs) are usually not approved for routine practice of decontamination and reuse. However, such practice of decontamination and reuse may be needed only as a crisis capacity strategy to ensure continued availability. The current severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic would help us enlighten about more effective and efficient ways of decontamination and reuse. Based on the limited research available, ultraviolet irradiation, vapors of hydrogen peroxide, and moist heat showed the most promising potential methods to decontaminate FFRs. This article summarizes available research about decontamination of FFRs before reuse.