According to the Institute of Chemical Processes of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Chinese respirators protecting against infection are less effective than declared by suppliers.
Since the first half of March, deliveries with respirators and other protective equipment have been sent to the Czech Republic from China, which are primarily intended to protect first-line workers from coronavirus infection.
However, it now appears that the protection provided by the supplied respirators can be problematic.
The Research Institute of Occupational Safety, which falls under the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, is in charge of inspecting protective equipment. The inspection is governed by the European standard ČSN EN 149 + A1.
The respirators were also tested at the Institute of Chemical Processes of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic. According to experts from this academic workplace, the filtering capacity of respirators decreases from 94 to 40 percent if the respirator is not glued to the face.
This is because the masks on the faces of Europeans do not fit - they are smaller for them.
"Respirators currently supplied from Southeast Asia actually provide protection slightly lower than declared, and this is how they should be used," said Vladimír Ždímal, head of the Department of Chemistry and Physics of Aerosols at the Institute of Chemical Processes of the Academy of Sciences.
"Chinese facial aids usually leak and any leakage will rapidly reduce the effectiveness," confirmed the physicist and rector of CTU Vojtěch Petráček, who is also the coordinator of the expert team of COVID Czechia.
Source:
Respirátory, které netěsní. Podezření se potvrdilo v laboratoři - Seznam Zprávy
No English source about this exist, therefore cannot be supplied.
Since the first half of March, deliveries with respirators and other protective equipment have been sent to the Czech Republic from China, which are primarily intended to protect first-line workers from coronavirus infection.
However, it now appears that the protection provided by the supplied respirators can be problematic.
The Research Institute of Occupational Safety, which falls under the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, is in charge of inspecting protective equipment. The inspection is governed by the European standard ČSN EN 149 + A1.
The respirators were also tested at the Institute of Chemical Processes of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic. According to experts from this academic workplace, the filtering capacity of respirators decreases from 94 to 40 percent if the respirator is not glued to the face.
This is because the masks on the faces of Europeans do not fit - they are smaller for them.
"Respirators currently supplied from Southeast Asia actually provide protection slightly lower than declared, and this is how they should be used," said Vladimír Ždímal, head of the Department of Chemistry and Physics of Aerosols at the Institute of Chemical Processes of the Academy of Sciences.
"Chinese facial aids usually leak and any leakage will rapidly reduce the effectiveness," confirmed the physicist and rector of CTU Vojtěch Petráček, who is also the coordinator of the expert team of COVID Czechia.
Source:
Respirátory, které netěsní. Podezření se potvrdilo v laboratoři - Seznam Zprávy
No English source about this exist, therefore cannot be supplied.