Protection against the corona virus: What do breathing masks bring? That's what experts say

The corona virus has arrived in Germany, respiratory masks are in demand. But do they protect against the disease at all?

• The corona virus has arrived in Germany , the first case was confirmed in Bavaria
• Respirators are common as a protective measure and sold out in some pharmacies
• Do breathing masks help against the corona virus and how else can you protect yourself?

Update from January 28th, 2020, 17:19: Even if experts estimate that the risk of infection in Germany is low, people are worried. Now the Hessian pharmacies are reporting that the respirators are sold out.

Are respiratory masks a suitable protective measure against the corona virus? Experts say: no.

© picture alliance / dpa

First report, January 28, 2020: Frankfurt - The corona virus that broke out in Wuhan in China in late 2019 has now also arrived in Germany. A man in the Bavarian district of Landsberg was infected by a colleague from China - apparently the first case of a transmission of the corona virus from person to person outside of Asia.

Since the corona virus has become an issue, people are increasingly seen wearing respirators in public. Can the protective masks help against infection with the corona virus? Apparently, many people seem to believe that respiratory masks are "in increasing demand" in many pharmacies nationwide, said Ursula Sellerberg of the Federal Association of German Pharmacists' Associations on Monday (January 27, 2020).

Do respirators protect against the corona virus?

Bernd Salzberger, chairman of the German Society for Infectious Diseases, currently considers protective measures by citizens such as wearing a face mask to be unnecessary. "Personal protection is completely senseless at the moment," dpa quotes the infection expert. According to the expert, the surgical face masks were not made to protect against infection.

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The respiratory masks should ensure that potentially infectious droplets from the surgeon's respiratory tract do not get into the operating area. It therefore makes sense to wear a mask to protect other people, for example as a flu patient. "But the protection against infection from the outside is very, very bad with it," says Salzberger.

Protection against the corona virus: Respirators only help to a limited extent

The masks do not seem to help against viruses that are transmitted through the air, but they can help against something else: against smear infections, which are promoted by the frequent grip on the nose and mouth.

The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) and the World Health Organization do not recommend wearing a face mask against the coronavirus. However, according to the RKI, patients who are classified as suspected cases should wear a multi-layer mouth-nose mask.

Fear of the corona virus: protective masks sold out in some pharmacies

Respiratory masks have already been sold out in some pharmacies in Bavaria, reports the dpa news agency, citing a spokesman for the Bavarian Association of Pharmacists. There is currently an increased demand in view of the corona virus. In addition, it is difficult for some wholesalers to get supplies.

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Corona viruses - including Sars and Mers - are usually transmitted by smear or droplet infection. How exactly the new coronavirus 2019-nCoV is transmitted, so far there is no detailed information, according to the RKI (what you know about the coronavirus can be found here). Researchers are also not yet able to precisely assess the risk of infection. Chinese researchers assume that an infected person infects an average of 1.4 to 2.5 people. However, the transmission rate depends on a large number of factors.

How can you protect yourself against the corona virus?

Since corona viruses are transmitted by droplet or smear infection, the Robert Koch Institute and the World Health Organization recommend the following measures against infection:

• good hand hygiene
• Cough and sneeze etiquette
• Distance to the sick

If there is a #virus disease of the respiratory tract, countless pathogens can be sprayed and spread to others when coughing and sneezing. Simple hygiene rules for #coughing and #neezing help to protect others from infection. https://t.co/m3oZAQTb1U pic.twitter.com/5cAyFzUfGO

However, in view of the current flu wave and cold period, these protective measures are not only used to prevent the corona virus, but also to protect against the common cold or flu.

Coronavirus suspected in Frankfurt and Göttingen

The corona virus is also an issue in Frankfurt and Hesse and Lower Saxony: At Frankfurt Airport, an aircraft coming from China reported a passenger with a fever before landing - however, there was an all-clear *. Frankfurt Airport is arming itself for the coronavirus emergency. There is currently a suspected coronavirus case in Göttingen.

The corona virus is putting pressure on government in China. This time Xi Jinping cannot refer to foreign forces as the cause of the health problems in the country, as reported by fr.de *.

By Tanja Banner, with dpa

Section picture: picture alliance / dpa

* fr.de is part of the nationwide Ippen-Digital central editorial office.

Due to the spread of the corona virus, around 100 Germans are flown to Frankfurt. There they are housed "under quarantine conditions". Those who stock up on face mask and infection spray because of the corona virus in this country are only promoting the sales of retailers. A comment on fr.de * reports.

List of rubric lists: © picture alliance / Karl-Josef Hildenbrand / dpa