Historical Evolution and Filtering Characteristics of Masks and Respirators in Dentistry in the Context of COVID-19: A Literature Review

OBJECTIVES: At present, it is very important to identify the available literature regarding the use of masks and respirators by analyzing their historical evolution in the medical field. In addition, consideration should be given to the major filtering characteristics of those most used due to the current SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Therefore, the purpose of this literature review is to describe the qualitative evolution that facemasks and respirators have undergone along with their different characteristics. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This literature review was conducted between September and December 2020. Articles were identified from PubMed Central, Scopus, and Web of Science. The following keywords were used: “COVID-19,” “dentistry,” and “masks.” These MeSH terms were combined with the Boolean operators “AND” and “OR.” RESULTS: We found 36 articles in PubMed Central, 21 in Scopus, and 17 in Web of Science, which included reviews, clinical, descriptive, and experimental trials. CONCLUSION: The emergence of new pathogens leads to continuous improvement in masks and respirators. It was determined that for the dental field, respirators with filtration characteristics greater than 95%, such as FFP3, N100, N95, and KN95, are indicated in addition to their decontamination and reuse processes.