Coronavirus FAQs: What are Braces Mask? What if I get COVID after 1 dose of vaccine?

Each week, we answer “frequently asked questions” about life during a coronavirus crisis. If you have a question that you would like to consider us for a future post, please email us at [email protected] with the subject line: “Weekly Coronavirus Questions.”

With concerns arising about more removable masks, I’ve been reading a lot about double masks. But are there other ways to develop a mask? What about mask braces and mask tape? And do I have to shake my beard ?!

Two masks are better than one. That is what Dr Anthony Fauci has said against changes that are going to be easier to deliver.

The goal is to get better equipped when you are in potentially dangerous places – say, a crowded store. Anything you can do to improve the seal, especially around the surface of the nose, is helpful in keeping pathogens out of your personal air space, says Richard Corsi, dean of the College of Engineering and Science Computing at Portland State University.

But there are no one-size-fits-all solutions. “There is no one method that is better than another,” says Sonali Advani, a professor of medicine at Duke University.

Try the various options and find one that is comfortable enough to sustain all the time you are out in a potentially dangerous environment.

Here’s a closer look at some of the different options.

Mascara tape: Like what is marketed as medical tape, “mascara tape is like a high – tech Band-Aid,” says Corsi. It is sold at most pharmacies and online, of course. You can take one strip about 3 inches long and use it to tape your mask down your skin where it meets your nose or use 3 smaller strips directly to tighten the equipment. ” Interestingly, my wife is used to it, and the tape survives and helps seal and mist her glasses, ”Corsi says.

Braces mascara: Virginia Tech Researcher Linsey Marr on tweet that these are very useful, although she warns that they look extremely dorky! You can buy these rubber tools online, or you can make a DIY version with a template – first you need to buy a rubber sheet. Find Marr brace a little tight to wear over a mask for a long time but also easy to attach with a back-up mask that you keep, say, in your car or bag. “It should greatly improve the performance of my surgery mask, which was very leaky around the sides,” she noted on Twitter.

There are also mask braces for sale online, made of silicone and something like the forboding mask that Hannibal Lecter wears in The silence of the lambs. These braces would fit a mask so that it seals more tightly against your face.

Close cropping: In normal times, Corsi has a beard and mustache. But he shook his beard when he realized he was applying his appropriate mask. “When you inhale, the air travels to the smallest airway,” he explains. “Facial hair creates many air gaps to get in properly. So shaking the beard is very important if you want to be properly protected. “Go for a clean shave anywhere the mask rubs against the face, he says.

If I contract COVID-19 after my first vaccine dose, what do I do? Should I delay the second dose even if it means going outside the recommended time?

Although controversial on the point, it has been shown that dose 1 does not offer the full level of protection as the combination for two-dose vaccines.

Regarding the Pfizer vaccine, for example, one study measured efficacy after the first injection of around 50%. That number burned up to over 92% after the second dose.

At the same time, it will take a few weeks for your body to start digesting antibodies after receiving the vaccine.

So you could theoretically be exposed to the virus while in a clinic or pharmacy receiving your dose. Or you may be cared for after a single dose and drop some of your preventative measures – don’t, please, do this !!

Then what?

“If you contract COVID-19 after your first dose [of the vaccine], you should wait until you have recovered from a real illness and cleared up isolation guidelines [before getting vaccinated again], “said Abraar Karan, a physician at Harvard Medical School.

As there is a risk of other people becoming infected, you should not break your loneliness prematurely to end your vaccination order.

Sonali Advani, an associate professor of medicine at Duke University, is particularly concerned about risks to medical and frontline staff – beyond the usual risks of spreading a disease that you would carry with going anywhere with a COVID-19 case.

Plus, since you already have the disease … there is less urgency to get the second dose of the vax.

One lucky note: For the very few who are unlucky enough to find ourselves infected between vaccine doses, Advani points to new Centers for Disease Control and prevention guidance: According to the CDC, put on your second dose for up to 42 days without sacrificing effectiveness.

Advani suspects that the majority should have more than enough time to recover from the COVID-19 case, complete necessary isolation times and receive a second dosing within a window. vaccine.

And to make sure this doesn’t happen to you, Advani insists on following all the major COVID-19 protective instructions carefully after you get the first dose – speed, mask wear and hand washing to often and well.

Does it matter if I get the second dose of my COVID-19 vaccine in a different arm than the first?

Our experts agree: No.

It doesn’t matter which arm you get your vaccine in, and it doesn’t matter if you get all doses of the two-component Covid-19 vaccine in separate arms, they say. After all, it still fits into the same body.

Sheila Mulrooney Eldred is a freelance health journalist in Minneapolis. She has written about COVID-19 for many publications including Medscape, Kaiser Health News, Science News for Students and The Washington Post. More at sheilaeldred.pressfolios.com. On Twitter: @milepostmedia

Pranav Baskar is a freelance journalist who regularly answers Coronavirus Frequently Asked Questions for NPR. Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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