Hamster Wearing a Mask, COVID-19 Infection Rate ↓
Experiment at Hong Kong University: Partitioned Cages, Unpartitioned Cages, and Mask-Partitioned Cages
Only 2 of 12 in Mask-Partitioned Cages Infected
[Asia Economy Reporter Cho Young-shin] A hamster experiment has shown that wearing face masks significantly reduces the transmission rate of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19). Since the COVID-19 virus is known to spread through respiratory droplets, the importance of masks has been confirmed through this experiment.
The South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported on the 18th (local time) that a research team from the University of Hong Kong conducted an experiment using hamsters infected with COVID-19 and found that masks play a major role in preventing infection.
For the experiment, the research team created three conditions: ▲a cage without partitions ▲a cage with partitions ▲a cage with partitions made of surgical masks. They placed one COVID-19 infected hamster and 15 uninfected hamsters in the cage without partitions. After 7 days, 10 out of the 15 hamsters (66.6%) became infected with COVID-19. In the cage with partitions, 4 out of 12 uninfected hamsters (33.3%) tested positive.
In the cage with partitions made of surgical masks, the infection rate was significantly lower. Only 2 out of 12 uninfected hamsters (16.6%) were found to have the COVID-19 virus. The research team also explained that the hamsters artificially infected with COVID-19 showed severe symptoms. In contrast, other hamsters secondarily infected from these hamsters exhibited mild symptoms (with minimal pathological changes).
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Professor Win Kwok-yung (Yuen Kwok-yung) of the University of Hong Kong said, "Even when wearing masks, there is still a risk of infection, but that risk is greatly reduced," and added, "This experiment confirmed that masks are highly effective." He also emphasized, "Currently, there is no safe and effective vaccine, and the most practical way to prevent the spread of infection under the current circumstances is social distancing and wearing masks."
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