Protective Measures

Droplet infection seems to be the primary route of spread for the SARS virus in the healthcare setting (Seto). In a case control study in five Hong Kong hospitals, with 241 non-infected and 13 infected staff with documented exposures to 11 index patients, no infection was observed among 69 healthcare workers who reported the use of mask, gloves, gowns, and hand washing. N95 masks provided the best protection for exposed healthcare workers, whereas paper masks did not significantly reduce the risk of infection (Seto).

Table 1 shows a summary of precautions for droplet infection. The implementation of aggressive infection control measures was effective in preventing the further transmission of SARS (Hsu).