Respiratory Protective Equipment for Healthcare Providers During Coronavirus Pandemic: "Nec Temere, Nec Timide"

H Bengü Çobanoğlu; Görkem Eskiizmir; Mustafa Kürşat Gökcan

doi:10.5152/tao.2020.5999

Respiratory Protective Equipment for Healthcare Providers During Coronavirus Pandemic: "Nec Temere, Nec Timide"

Turk Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2020 Dec;58(4):268-273. doi: 10.5152/tao.2020.5999. Epub 2020 Dec 1.

Authors

H Bengü Çobanoğlu¹, Görkem Eskiizmir², Mustafa Kürşat Gökcan³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Karadeniz Technical University School of Medicine, Trabzon, Turkey.
² Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Celal Bayar University School of Medicine, Manisa, Turkey.
³ Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Ankara University School of Medicine, Ankara, Turkey.

Abstract

In otorhinolaryngology-head and neck surgery, there are several routine and surgical procedures applied to the upper airway that generate droplets and/or aerosols. Therefore, otorhinolaryngology-head and neck surgeons are at higher risk of being exposed to viral content. The COVID-19 pandemic has shaken the world with approximately 30 million affected cases and more than 900.000 deaths officially reported in more than 200 countries/regions from March 11^th, 2020 to date (September 12^th, 2020). All healthcare providers working at the frontlines of the fight against the COVID-19 are at risk of contracting the virus. In this review, we discuss the efficacy of the different types of respiratory protective equipment and remind about the surgery-based respiratory protection strategies in otorhinolaryngology and head and neck surgeries in the light of the latest literature.

Keywords: COVID-19; Otorhinolaryngology; contagious infection; healthcare provider; personal protective equipment; virus disease.

Publication types

Review