class=”sc-29f61514-0 kHgAwW”>
Masks and tests were mandatory in many schools during the corona pandemic. For some Corona critics, that went too far. They took their children out of primary school. A study from the University of Bern, published on Wednesday in the journal “Plos Medicine”, now shows that mandatory masks in Swiss schools have curbed the spread of the coronavirus.
According to the study, airborne concentrations of Covid were on average 70 percent lower when masks were mandatory. Using an air purifier reduced the viral load in the air by 40 percent.
21 percent of infections avoided
The researchers came to this conclusion after analyzing data from two secondary schools in the canton of Solothurn during the omicron wave from January to March 2022. Air Samples, CO2-Content, as well as the number and size of the measured air particles. As the repetitive Covid testing was conducted in the schools for the duration of the study, data on infections was also available.
In the study, the researchers estimated that during the mask obligation, which applied for two to three weeks of the study phase, 2 to 19 infections could be avoided in 90 schoolchildren. This corresponds to about 2 to 21 percent.
The results are consistent with similar studies
“That’s quite a lot when you consider how many infections could have been avoided if the mask requirement had applied throughout the study period of seven weeks or more,” said study leader Lukas Fenner of the University of Bern when asked by the Keystone-SDA news agency. According to Fenner, these results are also consistent with the results of similar studies from Germany.
The mask requirement in Swiss schools has long been controversial. Countless people demonstrated against it. On the other hand, some parents from the canton of Bern even filed a lawsuit in the Federal Supreme Court – without success. Among other things, it was feared that the children could be harmed by wearing the masks. In addition, the effectiveness of this measure was questioned. (SDA/oco)
Source:Blick
I am Liam Livingstone and I work in a news website. My main job is to write articles for the 24 Instant News. My specialty is covering politics and current affairs, which I’m passionate about. I have worked in this field for more than 5 years now and it’s been an amazing journey. With each passing day, my knowledge increases as well as my experience of the world we live in today.
