TY - JOUR
T1 - Effect of Universal Masking on Non-Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Healthcare-Associated Respiratory Viral Infections
AU - Munigala, Satish
AU - Ching, Patrick R.
AU - Wood, Helen
AU - Waken, R. J.
AU - Fox, Josephine
AU - Gasama, Heather
AU - Russell, Robert
AU - Yarbrough, Melanie L.
AU - Warren, David K.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 The Author(s).
PY - 2024/10/1
Y1 - 2024/10/1
N2 - Background: Respiratory viral infections are common and are a major cause of morbidity and mortality. We evaluated the impact of universal masking implemented during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on other healthcare-associated respiratory viral infections (HA-RIs) in an academic medical center. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was performed among all inpatients aged ≥18 years admitted between 1 May 2019 and 30 June 2022. Universal masking was implemented in May 2020 at our hospital and state-level mask mandates had been lifted by May 2021. We evaluated and compared the HA-RI rates, adjusted for monthly community-onset viral infections, during the premasking period, universal masking period, and post-community mandate period. Results: We identified 3015 patients (median age, 58 years; 48.0% males) with a positive respiratory viral test within 14 days prior to, or during, their hospitalization; 441 (14.6%) patients had an HA-RI. Rhinovirus/enterovirus (51.0%), parainfluenza virus (14.3%), coronaviruses (229E, OC43, HKU1, and NL63; 13.2%) and influenza (10.0%) were the predominant HA-RI viruses detected. The monthly HA-RI rate decreased 34.9% (95% confidence interval, 8.8%-51.8%) after the implementation of universal masking (0.71 premasking period vs 0.19 universal masking period vs 0.35 infections per 1000 patient-days in the post-community mandate period) while accounting for a drop in the community-onset respiratory viral infections using a structural time-series model analysis (P <. 001), with no significant change in HA-RI rates with the relaxation of community masking mandate. Conclusions: Implementation of universal masking at our hospital was associated with a significantly reduced incidence of HA-RIs.
AB - Background: Respiratory viral infections are common and are a major cause of morbidity and mortality. We evaluated the impact of universal masking implemented during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on other healthcare-associated respiratory viral infections (HA-RIs) in an academic medical center. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was performed among all inpatients aged ≥18 years admitted between 1 May 2019 and 30 June 2022. Universal masking was implemented in May 2020 at our hospital and state-level mask mandates had been lifted by May 2021. We evaluated and compared the HA-RI rates, adjusted for monthly community-onset viral infections, during the premasking period, universal masking period, and post-community mandate period. Results: We identified 3015 patients (median age, 58 years; 48.0% males) with a positive respiratory viral test within 14 days prior to, or during, their hospitalization; 441 (14.6%) patients had an HA-RI. Rhinovirus/enterovirus (51.0%), parainfluenza virus (14.3%), coronaviruses (229E, OC43, HKU1, and NL63; 13.2%) and influenza (10.0%) were the predominant HA-RI viruses detected. The monthly HA-RI rate decreased 34.9% (95% confidence interval, 8.8%-51.8%) after the implementation of universal masking (0.71 premasking period vs 0.19 universal masking period vs 0.35 infections per 1000 patient-days in the post-community mandate period) while accounting for a drop in the community-onset respiratory viral infections using a structural time-series model analysis (P <. 001), with no significant change in HA-RI rates with the relaxation of community masking mandate. Conclusions: Implementation of universal masking at our hospital was associated with a significantly reduced incidence of HA-RIs.
KW - COVID-19 pandemic
KW - healthcare setting
KW - healthcare-associated respiratory viral infections
KW - medical face mask
KW - respiratory viral infections
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85208231320&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1093/ofid/ofae617
DO - 10.1093/ofid/ofae617
M3 - Article
C2 - 39474447
AN - SCOPUS:85208231320
SN - 2328-8957
VL - 11
JO - Open Forum Infectious Diseases
JF - Open Forum Infectious Diseases
IS - 10
M1 - ofae617
ER -