Face masks and COVID-19: don’t let perfect be the enemy of good

摘要

Whether to don face masks or facial coverings to pre- vent community spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has perhaps been one of the most argued and divisive issues, initially between East Asia and the West and later within western countries. Even the World Health Organization (WHO) had prevaricated on the issue during the initial months of the pandemic until it advised governments to ‘encourage the general pub- lic to wear masks in specific situations and settings as part of a comprehensive approach to suppress COVID- 19 transmission’ in guidance issued in June 2020 1.