Table 1.
Characteristics of the volunteers at the level of sample pairs.a
| Cloth Mask | Surgical Mask | KN95 | N95 | All sample pairs | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of positive exhaled breath sample pairs | 8 | 26 | 13 | 13 | 60 |
| Variant, N (%)b | |||||
| Other | 6 (75) | 17 (65) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 23 (38) |
| Alpha | 1 (12) | 2 (8) | 1 (8) | 0 (0) | 4 (7) |
| Delta | 1 (12) | 1 (4) | 2 (15) | 0 (0) | 4 (7) |
| Omicron BA.1 | 0 (0) | 5 (19) | 8 (62) | 1 (8) | 14 (23) |
| Omicron BA.2 | 0 (0) | 1 (4) | 2 (15) | 12 (92) | 15 (25) |
| Sex, N (%)c | |||||
| Female | 2 (25) | 10 (38) | 4 (31) | 9 (69) | 25 (42) |
| Male | 6 (75) | 16 (62) | 9 (69) | 4 (31) | 35 (58) |
| Age, mean ± SD | 28.4 ± 14.9 | 23.3 ± 8.4 | 38 ± 19.5 | 33.7 ± 17.5 | 29.4 ± 15.3 |
| Age group, N (%) | |||||
| <18 | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 2 (15) | 2 (3) |
| 18–45 | 7 (88) | 25 (96) | 8 (62) | 7 (54) | 47 (78) |
| >45 | 1 (12) | 1 (4) | 5 (38) | 4 (31) | 11 (18) |
| White | 7 (88) | 20 (77) | 12 (92) | 7 (54) | 46 (77) |
| BMI, mean ± SD | 23.4 ± 2.5 | 23.5 ± 3.1 | 27.9 ± 6.8 | 22.7 ± 2.4 | 24.3 ± 4.4 |
| Chronic respiratory illness, N (%) | 0 (0) | 7 (27) | 5 (38) | 1 (8) | 13 (22) |
| Vaccination status, N (%) | |||||
| Boosted | 0 (0) | 2 (8) | 8 (62) | 13 (100) | 23 (38) |
| Fully vaccinated, not boosted | 1 (12) | 5 (19) | 4 (31) | 0 (0) | 10 (17) |
| Partially vaccinated | 1 (12) | 4 (15) | 1 (8) | 0 (0) | 6 (10) |
| Unvaccinated | 6 (75) | 15 (58) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 21 (35) |
| Symptomatic, N (%) | 8 (100) | 26 (100) | 13 (100) | 13 (100) | 60 (100) |
| Days post symptom onset, mean ± SD (range) | 4 ± 2 (1–6) | 4 ± 1 (1–7) | 3 ± 1 (1–5) | 3 ± 1 (1–5) | 4 ± 1 (1–7) |
| Coughs per 30 min, mean ± SD (range) | 1 ± 2 (0–6) | 4 ± 14 (0–69) | 13 ± 17 (0–64) | 6 ± 10 (0–32) | 6 ± 13 (0–69) |
| Median upper respiratory symptoms (IQR) | 2.5 (1.8–4.2) | 3 (2–4) | 2 (1–5) | 4 (2–7) | 3 (2–5) |
| Median lower respiratory symptoms (IQR) | 0 (0–0.2) | 1 (0–2) | 2 (1–2) | 2 (1–3) | 1 (0–2) |
| Median systemic symptoms (IQR) | 3 (0–6.5) | 3 (1–6) | 5 (1–7) | 3 (1–6) | 3 (1–6) |
| Median gastrointestinal symptoms (IQR) | 1 (0–2) | 0 (0–1) | 2 (0–3) | 0 (0–2) | 0 (0–1.2) |
| Temperature (C), mean ± SD | 37.2 ± 0.2 | 37.1 ± 0.2 | 37.3 ± 0.4 | 36.9 ± 0.2 | 37.1 ± 0.3 |
| Oxygen saturation (SpO2), mean ± SD | 97.8 ± 1 | 98 ± 0.8 | 97.2 ± 0.8 | 97.8 ± 1 | 97.8 ± 0.9 |
a
Among the 44 volunteers included in this study, 16 volunteers provided two sample pairs, while the remaining volunteers provide 1 pair. Characteristics of the 44 volunteers are presented in Supplementary Table S1.
b
BA.1 includes seven BA.1 and seven BA.1.1; BA.2 includes eight BA.2, five BA.2.12.1, and two BA.2.3.
c
Sex information was self-reported by study volunteers.