Can disposable medical masks be sprayed with medical alcohol for disinfection and reused? Feng Luzhao, a researcher at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, introduced that ordinary residents use disposable masks in places where the risk is relatively low, which can be reused under the condition that the masks are clean and structurally complete, especially the inner layer is not contaminated. After each use they should be placed in a clean, dry and ventilated place. In addition, spraying disinfectant, including medical alcohol, will reduce the protection efficiency, so it is not appropriate to use alcohol spray to disinfect the mask.
The re-use of masks must be divided into specific situations. If you are alone, for example, you don’t have contact with outsiders at home, you can not wear masks, including in a private car, or alone outdoors, in the community, and in a park with few pedestrians. Walking here, these are not necessary to wear masks.
However, patients who come and go in crowded public places, take transportation, including shopping malls, take elevators, include conference rooms, and go to ordinary medical institutions (except for hot clinics) can wear ordinary medical masks, which are what we call disposable medical masks.
In this case, after returning home, the mask can be reused by placing it in a clean, dry and ventilated place. For staff in intensive locations, including industry personnel, administrative personnel, police, security guards, couriers, etc., who are involved in the epidemic, it is recommended to wear medical surgical masks. The length of use and the frequency of replacement of masks can be appropriately extended according to the actual situation. In other words, if the mask has no obvious dirty deformation, you don’t need to change it every four hours, but if there is dirt, deformation, damage, or smell, you need to replace it in time.
