Background

The reliability of N95 filtering facepiece respirators (FFRs) depends on correct fitting. The perceived usability of FFR is equally important because discomfort during usage may affect compliance. Body movements during nursing procedures may also increase the risk of face seal leakage.

Aim

To evaluate the mask fit and usability of the best fit 3M N95 FFRs and nanofibre N95 FFR before and after nursing procedures. The physical properties of these FFRs were also examined.

Methods

This experimental study adopted one-group multiple comparison design. 104 nursing students participated and performed nursing procedures for 10 minutes when wearing the best fit 3M FFR and nanofibre FFR. The mask fit and perceived usability of the FFRs were evaluated.

Findings

More participants failed to obtain fit factor of ≥100 when using 3M FFR than when wearing the nanofiber FFR (33.7% versus 21.2%) after the procedures (p=0.417). The nanofibre FFR also demonstrated higher usability, in terms of facial heat, breathability, facial pressure, speech intelligibility, itchiness, difficulty of maintaining the mask in place, and comfort level than the 3M FFRs (p<0.001). The nanofiber FFR is also lighter, thinner, and has a slightly higher bacterial filtration efficiency than the 3M FFRs.

Conclusion

The nanofibre FFR demonstrated significantly better usability than the 3M FFRs. All respirators could not provide consistent protection for the wearer, as detected by face seal leakage after performing nursing procedures. Further improvement in the prototype design is needed to increase compliance and ensure the respiratory protection of users.

中文翻译：

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在护理程序之前和之后比较传统和纳米纤维N95过滤式面罩呼吸器的面罩贴合度和可用性

背景

N95过滤式口罩呼吸器（FFR）的可靠性取决于正确的安装方式。FFR的可感知可用性同样重要，因为使用过程中的不适感可能会影响合规性。护理过程中的身体运动也可能增加面部密封件泄漏的风险。

目的

在护理程序之前和之后，评估面罩的贴合度和最佳贴合性3M N95 FFR和纳米纤维N95 FFR的可用性。还检查了这些FFR的物理性质。

方法

本实验研究采用单组多重比较设计。104名护理专业的学生穿着最合适的3M FFR和纳米纤维FFR参加并进行了10分钟的护理程序。评估了FFR的面罩贴合度和可感知的可用性。

发现

与使用纳米纤维FFR的患者相比，使用3M FFR时未能获得≥100的拟合因子的比例（33.7％对21.2％）（p = 0.417）。与3M FFR相比，纳米纤维FFR在面部发热量，透气性，面部压力，语音清晰度，发痒，将面罩保持在适当位置的难度以及舒适度方面也显示出更高的可用性（p <0.001）。与3M FFR相比，纳米纤维FFR还更轻，更薄，并且细菌过滤效率略高。

结论

纳米纤维FFR比3M FFR具有更好的可用性。所有呼吸器不能为提供一致的保护的死死的，作为执行护理程序后端面密封泄漏检测。需要对原型设计进行进一步的改进，以提高顺应性并确保用户的呼吸保护。