More protective than surgical masks, FFP2 masks should be reserved for caregivers, who perform highly invasive procedures, says the body that advises the Ministry of Health.


France has thus moved into a new era: that of confined citizens who are sometimes masked as soon as they set foot outside. Since Monday 16 March, everyone, while shopping, has been able to come across people wearing surgical masks.

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"It is absolutely useless. It might just be useful if a coronavirus patient starts sneezing on you from less than a metre away. But if everyone respects the barrier measurements of one metre, you don't need a mask to do your shopping! "says Professor Didier Lepelletier, president of the scientific council of the French Society of Hospital Hygiene. A body that advises the Ministry of Health on this subject that has become crucial.

"Large infectious particles that will fall to the ground".
It's important to remember that the Covid-19 virus does not remain airborne. "A patient who coughs or sneezes will emit large infectious particles which, by the law of gravity, will fall to the ground," says Professor Lepelletier. This doctor wants to reassure all those who are afraid of being contaminated by entering a closed space where a sick person may have passed through.

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But wearing a mask is of course essential for a doctor or nurse who, on a daily basis, approaches patients closely. According to Professor Lepelletier, in the vast majority of cases, wearing a simple surgical mask is sufficient.

The FFP2 masks, which the general public has discovered in recent days, are in fact indicated for invasive medical procedures, in the ENT or respiratory sphere. "These FFP2 masks are more protective than surgical masks, but they must be used for procedures that cause coughing and that are carried out in close proximity to the patient: for example when performing intubation or respiratory physiotherapy to relieve congestion," he explains.

A stock of 110 million surgical masks.
Accuracy is important. For the past few days, many city doctors and nurses have been waiting with some trepidation for the FFP2 masks that the Ministry of Health has promised them. But for the vast majority of their actions, such as examining a patient, a simple surgical mask is enough to protect them.

"As we don't know if, in time, we will have enough FFP2 masks, we must reserve them for the caregivers who perform very invasive procedures," explains the doctor, who does not understand the policy of some hospitals, which consists of issuing surgical masks to all staff. "Officers who are not in contact with patients have no reason to wear masks, even if they work in a hospital," he says.

To face the crisis, the government decided to requisition all stocks of masks in France and all those leaving the factories. On Tuesday 18 March on France Inter, Olivier Véran indicated that the State had a stock of 110 million surgical masks. "We buy them everywhere, we manufacture them everywhere", explained the Minister of Health.