Health expert: Face shield works; reduces number of COVID-related deaths

FILE PHOTO: In this December 21, 2020, photo, a man and his companion wear face masks resembling the Philippine flag in Divisoria, Manila, as Palace announced that wearing of face shield along with face mask when out in public is still mandatory. INQUIRER file photo / MARIANNE BERMUDEZ

MANILA, Philippines — A health expert said Tuesday that wearing of face shields “helped” reduce deaths due to the infection of coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

Dr. Edsel Salvana, member of the Philippine Task Force on COVID-19 variants, made the remark as debates on the need to wear face masks continue.

“When you have two layers–face shields and the face mask–even if the virus gets through, you get very little in terms of the virus and that tends to cause only mild disease and this is why our death rates per million are about 1/10th less of the US, the UK, France, Spain… Face shields also helped save lives,” Salvana said in an interview with ABS-CBN News.

“It has helped definitely because we know that the lower the viral load that gets through, if you still get COVID then the milder your disease,” he added.

Salvana likewise said that now is not the time for the country to decrease its guards especially with the threat of a more dangerous Delta variant.

“It’s not that they [Center for Disease Control] do not recognize that they [face shields] don’t work–they do work–but it’s just a question of whether they are required or not,” Salvana said.

“In our case where we had surges and we still had a lot of community transmissions, it is an added layer of protection and now with this Delta variant, now is not a good time to decrease our guard,” he added.

On Monday night, President Rodrigo Duterte declared that wearing of face masks both indoors and outdoors is still mandatory.

The announcement came after confusion over the policy on face shields especially after contradictory statements from different government officials regarding the matter.

Duterte apologized to the public for the confusion over the government’s policy on the use of face shields.

JPV

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