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.