In a new study from Lund University, researchers examined the impact of national face mask laws on COVID-19 mortality in 44 countries with a combined population of nearly one billion people.
They found that over time, the increase in COVID-19 related deaths was much slower in countries that imposed mask laws compared to countries that did not.
The study shows that masks provide a supplementary layer of protection that could prevent unnecessary COVID-19 deaths.
Twenty-seven countries with face mask policies and 17 countries without face mask policies, covering a combined population of nearly one billion people, were included in the study.
The 44 countries studied reported 2,167,664 confirmed deaths, 1,253,757 in countries without face mask mandates and 913,907 in countries with face mask mandates.
The average COVID-19 mortality per million population was 48.40 in countries with face mask policies and 288.54 in countries without face mask policies, and this was much greater compared to countries with mask mandates.
Face mask countries had a much lower average daily increase in deaths compared to no face mask countries.
Surprisingly, the countries with no mask mandate started with a lower COVID-19 daily mortality.
However, the death rate accelerated so fast in those countries that they not only caught up with the death rate in mask law countries but strongly surpassed them over time.
As delays in vaccination continue to challenge health systems across the globe, the study adds to evidence that before, and even after, full vaccination of the population, face masks continue to be a preventive measure against COVID-19.
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The study is published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine. One author of the study is Sahar Motallebi, MD, MPH.
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