executive summary
Version 4.0 Infection Prevention and Control Related to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19): Living Guidelines Chapter Update: Mask Use.Part 2: Set up your community
About this guideline
Infection prevention and control in the context of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): Living guidelines provide evidence-based technical guidance for infection prevention and control (IPC) developed and published during the COVID-19 pandemic. integrated into the IPC recommendations. Part 1 presents recommendations for IPC in the context of healthcare settings, and Part 2 presents recommendations for community settings. The methodology section describes the methodological approach used to develop the guidelines, including a glossary. The annex contains tables of evidence for mask use in healthcare and community settings and mask use by children. Life guidelines are created, distributed and updated on an online platform (MAGICapp). It has a user-friendly format and easy-to-navigate structure, and supports dynamically updated evidence and recommendations. This structure keeps existing recommendations up-to-date within the guidelines while focusing on new ones.
This living guideline addresses the current and evolving epidemiological trends of COVID-19 and the emergence of new variants of concern (VoC), including Omicron and its substrains, as well as herd immunity, vaccine availability and It takes into account factors such as intake, and other situational factors. COVID-19 Pandemic.
The intended audience for these guidelines is policy makers, decision makers, public health professionals, national, local, and facility-level IPC professionals, health facility administrators, administrators, and other health care professionals. .
environment
Countries face varying degrees of impact from severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).Given the global COVID-19 epidemiological situation, viral evolution and unpredictability, and the impact of current and future SARSCoV-2 VoC, the progeny strains of these variants and other respiratory strains, including influenza Combining Mitigation Measures Needed to Reduce the Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic [1]Factors such as the severity of the SARS-CoV-2 epidemic, vaccination coverage, population immunity to SARS-CoV-2, the capacity of the health system to respond, and the adjustability of public health and social measures (PHSM) It affects the circulation and epidemiological situation of the virus around the world. [3][4] Based on these and other factors, national policies should be strengthened and implemented to encourage IPC measures in healthcare facilities and maintenance of PHSM against COVID-19 in the community. [4][5]In particular, local conditions should be determined by considering three main factors before adjusting PHSM: Severity of COVID-19; impact on healthcare systems [65].
Updated recommendations
This version of the guidelines (version 4.0) contains the following recommendations:
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We strongly recommend using masks in community settings in high-risk situations.
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A conditional recommendation to encourage a risk-based approach to using masks in community settings in situations not within the scope of a strong recommendation.
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Individuals with signs or symptoms suggestive of COVID-19, or who have tested positive for COVID-19, when interacting with others within or outside the family or sharing spaces with others a good practice statement advising them to wear medical masks; and
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Modification of existing Good Practice Statements on Implementing Policies to Reduce SARS-CoV-2 Transmission Facilitates Reconsideration and Strengthening of PHSM as New Evidence Emerges
Understand new recommendations
The Guideline Development Group (GDG) reviewed the current body of scientific evidence [2] while assessing relative benefits and harms, value and preference, resource impact, availability, and feasibility issues. The strong, conditional recommendations for community mask use complement each other and outline scenarios in which masks may benefit wearers. Some situations (see strong recommendations) require wearing a mask for maximum protection, while other situations (see conditional recommendations) are better suited to a risk-based approach there is. PHSM combines measures (physical distancing, mask use, hand hygiene, etc.) to reduce the impact of SARS-CoV-2 infection.
Updating previous recommendations
Issued in December 2021 New Coronavirus Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Lifestyle Guidelines Wearing a mask in the community Version 1.0 [6], provided new guidance on using masks in community settings. This guideline supersedes existing advice on mask use related to his COVID-19 issued in December 2020. [7]Life Guidelines Version 4.0 is the latest update on guidance on mask use in the community.
The World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) have jointly created COVID-19 Living Guidelines Version 2.0, which was published in March 2022. [8]This version included updated guidance on mask use for children. Advice on child mask use in relation to COVID-19 was first published in August 2020 as an appendix to the document Mask use in relation to COVID-19. [7][9]Life Guidelines Version 2.0 supersedes previous advice on mask use for children in the context of COVID-19.
Version 3.0 of the COVID-19 Living Guidelines published in April 2022 [10], provided new guidance on the use of masks in healthcare settings. This updated guideline supersedes advice on mask use in healthcare settings related to COVID-19. [10][11][12].
Formulation of guidelines
This guideline was developed using the Recommendation, Evaluation, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) process and the Evidence-to-Decision framework. [13] Compliant with WHO norms and standards for guideline development [14][15].
The composition of the GDG includes IPC, epidemiology, infectious disease, pediatrics, water, hygiene and hygiene, engineering, aerobiology, and health care provider specialists. Groups were balanced according to geographic and gender representation. Various GDGs have been convened to address specific circumstances and populations (see Authors, Contributors, and Acknowledgments section). Methodologists with guideline development expertise assisted the GDG in formulating its recommendations. The GDG incorporates the individual patient’s perspective when making its recommendations, but also considers resource impact, acceptability, feasibility, equity, and human rights. The WHO Codes and Criteria Quality Assurance Division was instrumental in identifying a publicly available rapid systematic review for the review process. Where appropriate, WHO staff or commissioned external review teams conducted systematic reviews to address specific issues. Due to the rapidly evolving nature of the pandemic, the synthesis of evidence included preprints. Additional details are provided in the methodology section.
Updates and Access
This guideline and its previous versions are available from the WHO website and MAGICapp (online and PDF output for readers with limited Internet access).
