Masking by health care and public safety workers in non‐patient care areas to mitigate SARS‐CoV‐2 infection: A systematic review

OBJECTIVES: Wearing a mask is an important method for reducing severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2) transmission in health care and public safety settings. We assess the evidence regarding masking in the workplace during the initial months of the COVID‐19 pandemic (PROSPERO CRD4202432097). METHODS: We performed a systematic review of published literature from 4 databases and evaluated the quality of evidence with the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) framework. We searched for observational and experimental research involving public safety and health care workers. We included articles evaluating the use of masks, versus no mask, on the outcome of SARS‐CoV‐2 infection. RESULTS: Our search yielded 15,013 records, of which 9 studies were included. Most studies (n = 8; 88.9%) involved infections or outbreaks among health care workers. The majority (88.9%) used in‐depth interviews of cases and non‐cases to obtain self‐reported use of masks during periods of exposure. One of 9 studies quantitatively assessed differences in SARS‐CoV‐2 infection based on use of masks in non‐patient care settings. Use of observational study designs, small sample sizes, inadequate control for confounding, and inadequate measurement of exposure and non‐exposure periods with infected coworkers contributed to the quality of evidence being judged as very low. CONCLUSIONS: The available evidence from the initial months of the pandemic suggests that the use of masks in congregate, non‐patient care settings, such as breakrooms, helps to reduce risk of SARS‐CoV‐2 virus transmission. However, this evidence is limited and is of very low quality. Prospective studies incorporating active observation measures are warranted.