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Dynamics of Mask Use as a Prevention Strategy against SARS-CoV-2 in Panama.

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cam.issuedOnline2021-12-09
dc.contributor.authorFernández-Marín, Hermógenes
dc.contributor.authorBruner-Montero, Gaspar
dc.contributor.authorPortugal-Loayza, Ana
dc.contributor.authorMiranda, Virginia
dc.contributor.authorVillarreal Dominguez, Alcibiades Elias
dc.contributor.authorOrtega-Barría, Eduardo
dc.contributor.authorNúñez-Samudio, Virginia
dc.contributor.authorLandires, Iván
dc.contributor.authorMejía, Luis C
dc.contributor.authorLópez-Vergès, Sandra
dc.contributor.authorWcislo, William T
dc.contributor.authorKosagisharaf, Jagannatha Rao
dc.contributor.orcidBruner-Montero, Gaspar [0000-0002-4614-0338]
dc.contributor.orcidVillarreal Dominguez, Alcibiades Elias [0000-0002-6684-0593]
dc.contributor.orcidLandires, Iván [0000-0001-6323-1170]
dc.contributor.orcidMejía, Luis C [0000-0003-2135-5241]
dc.contributor.orcidLópez-Vergès, Sandra [0000-0002-1106-8479]
dc.contributor.orcidKosagisharaf, Jagannatha Rao [0000-0002-4801-3535]
dc.date.accessioned2022-01-28T16:47:07Z
dc.date.available2022-01-28T16:47:07Z
dc.date.issued2021-12-09
dc.date.updated2022-01-28T16:47:06Z
dc.description.abstractEarly in the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, many national public health authorities implemented non-pharmaceutical interventions to mitigate disease outbreaks. Panamá established mandatory mask use two months after its first documented case. Initial compliance was high, but diverse masks were used in public areas. We studied behavioral dynamics of mask use through the first two COVID-19 waves in Panama, to improve the implementation of effective, low-cost public health containment measures when populations are exposed to novel air-borne pathogens. Mask use behavior was recorded from pedestrians in four Panamanian populations (August to December 2020). We recorded facial coverings and if used, the type of mask, and gender and estimated age of the wearer. Our results showed that people were highly compliant (>95%) with mask mandates and demonstrated important population-level behaviors: (1) decreasing use of cloth masks over time, and increasing use of surgical masks; (2) mask use was 3-fold lower in suburban neighborhoods than other public areas and (3) young people were least likely to wear masks. Results help focus on highly effective, low-cost, public health interventions for managing and controlling a pandemic. Considerations of behavioral preferences for different masks, relative to pricing and availability, are essential for optimizing public health policies. Policies to increase the availability of effective masks, and behavioral nudges to increase acceptance, and to facilitate mask usage, during the ongoing SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, and for future pandemics of respiratory pathogens, are key tools, especially for nations lagging in access to expensive vaccines and pharmacological approaches.
dc.identifier.doi10.17863/CAM.80742
dc.identifier.eissn1660-4601
dc.identifier.issn1661-7827
dc.identifier.other34948592
dc.identifier.otherPMC8701989
dc.identifier.urihttps://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/333319
dc.languageeng
dc.language.isoeng
dc.publisherMDPI AG
dc.publisher.urlhttp://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph182412982
dc.rightsAttribution 4.0 International
dc.rights.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.sourcenlmid: 101238455
dc.sourceessn: 1660-4601
dc.subjectbehavioral modifications
dc.subjectcloth mask
dc.subjectpopulation response
dc.subjectpublic health
dc.subjectsurgical mask
dc.subjectAdolescent
dc.subjectCOVID-19
dc.subjectHumans
dc.subjectMasks
dc.subjectPandemics
dc.subjectPublic Health
dc.subjectSARS-CoV-2
dc.titleDynamics of Mask Use as a Prevention Strategy against SARS-CoV-2 in Panama.
dc.typeArticle
dcterms.dateAccepted2021-10-26
prism.issueIdentifier24
prism.publicationNameInt J Environ Res Public Health
prism.volume18
rioxxterms.licenseref.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
rioxxterms.versionVoR
rioxxterms.versionofrecord10.3390/ijerph182412982

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