To protect staff when entering a room of a patient with shingles, which PPE is essential?

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Multiple Choice

To protect staff when entering a room of a patient with shingles, which PPE is essential?

Shingles can spread varicella-zoster virus through airborne particles, especially in settings with active lesions or procedures that generate aerosols. To block inhalation of these fine particles, a tight-fitting N-95 respirator is needed because it filters out small aerosols that a regular surgical mask cannot. A surgical mask helps with larger droplets but doesn’t provide the same level of protection against airborne particles, and no mask would leave you unprotected. So, the essential protective piece is the N-95 respirator mask, typically used alongside other standard precautions.

Shingles can spread varicella-zoster virus through airborne particles, especially in settings with active lesions or procedures that generate aerosols. To block inhalation of these fine particles, a tight-fitting N-95 respirator is needed because it filters out small aerosols that a regular surgical mask cannot. A surgical mask helps with larger droplets but doesn’t provide the same level of protection against airborne particles, and no mask would leave you unprotected. So, the essential protective piece is the N-95 respirator mask, typically used alongside other standard precautions.

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