Reusing and/or reprocessing the N95 face respirator mask or equivalent: An integrative review

Abstract

Objective: to analyze the scientific evidence available on the different reprocessing methods and the necessary conditions for reuse of the N95 face respirator mask or equivalent. Method: an integrative literature review. The PICO strategy was used to elaborate the question. The search was conducted in four databases: PubMed, SciVerse Scopus, WebofScience and EMBASE, considering any period of time. Results: a total of 32 studies were included from the 561 studies identified, and they were presented in two categories: “Conditions for reuse” and “Reprocessing the masks”. Of the evaluated research studies, seven(21.8%) addressed the reuse of the N95 face respirator mask or equivalent and 25(78.1%) evaluated different reprocessing methods, namely: ultraviolet germicidal irradiation(14); hydrogen peroxide(8); vapor methods(14); using dry heat(5) and chemical methods(sodium hypochlorite[6], ethanol[4] and sodium chloride with sodium bicarbonate and dimethyldioxirane[1]). We emphasize that different methods were used in one same article. Conclusion: no evidence was found to support safe reprocessing of face respirator masks. In addition, reuse is contraindicated due to the risk of self-contamination and inadequate sealing.

Disposal and resource utilization of waste masks: a review

“…Hence, novel solvent-based technology is desirable to solve the problem of waste mask pollution during the epidemic (Sangkham 2020 ). The most existing reviews are about the feasibility of the secondary use of waste masks after disinfection (Gir et al 2021 ) and the introduction of physical and chemical valorization (Asim et al 2021 ; Torres and De-la-Torre 2021 ). However, the innovations of traditional technologies as well as the novel solvent-based technology have not been considered in previous reviews.…”