TAIF – Women do not need to wear medical face masks to guard against swine flu if they instead wear a suitable veil, doctors say.
“Women who wear the veil or cover their faces don’t need to wear protective masks as long as the veil is sterilized,” Dr. Dalal Namnagani, Consultant Pathologist and Director of the Blood Bank at King Abdul Aziz Specialist Hospital in Taif told Al-Watan newspaper Thursday.
“The veil should be washed and ironed after use, but should not be used by other people which might leave it vulnerable to contamination,” Namnagani said.
The doctor warned women against frequenting poorly ventilated mosques during Ramadan, and cited Taraweeh prayers as particularly hazardous when large number of worshippers congregate in close proximity reducing ventilation to the minimum.
“Women might also discard their veils inside the all-female sections, increasing the chances of spreading the infection.”
Many families say they have responded to awareness campaigns by getting their children to use face masks in crowded areas.
Housewife Umm Omar says she frequently made her children wash their hands with sterilizing soap and had them wear face masks when out in shops and parks.
“I’m also trying to limit our trips out of the house, except when it’s really necessary,” Umm Omar says.
Umm Anas, also a housewife, describes her home situation as “going through a real crisis”.
“The children refuse to wear the face masks I’ve given them as they are scared of their school friends poking fun at them,” she says.
An Okaz newspaper survey on Thursday found that only 8.62 percent of those asked wore protective masks, despite 20.94 percent saying that they were following all protective measures.
Dr. Radhadh Filimban, a pharmacologist at King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah, described two kinds of protective mask to Al-Watan, the first being a green model that is not airtight, and the second, normally seen being used by medical staff when treating patients suffering from illnesses such as tuberculosis, which does not allow the passage of air to penetrate.
In order to make the masks less unattractive to the more fashion-conscious younger generations, companies are producing different types in a variety of shapes and colors to suit different age groups.
“We don’t want children to be frightened by the idea of wearing masks,” Filimban says.
“They come in blue, white, rose and mauve and have drawings of cartoon characters on them like Mickey Mouse, or stars or animals. Masks for teenagers are available with skulls and national flags. It wouldn’t be a surprise if we soon see masks designed to match handbags or shoes.”
Ministry of Health campaigns have been urging the public to take all possible precautions to prevent the spread of swine flu and particular concern has been directed at controlling the situation during the pilgrimage season.
The ministry’s attention will now soon turn to schools before they return from the summer holidays.
Despite the concerted focus on the issue and the palpable fear among some of the public, the Okaz survey showed that while 24.38 percent were actively avoiding areas of public congregation, a majority 46.06 percent said, when asked “What are you doing to avoid being exposed to swine flu?”, that they were “doing nothing”.