Surgical masks were first introduced in the operating theatre in the late 1800s, usually made out of two layers of gauze. The masks first found their public appeal during the Spanish flu outbreak of 1918—an epidemic that killed around 50 million people……
Indeed, a recent study showed that surgical masks can be a source of bacterial contamination in the operating theatre. Although they are designed to trap bacteria shed by the surgeon’s nose and mouth, the study found bacteria on the exterior of used masks……
