Table 1. Percentage of healthcare workers exposed to the risk of inconsistent use of different types of personal protection equipment in 3 clinical settings with SARS patientsa.
| Type of personal protection equipment | Control (n = 143) | % | Case (n = 72) | % | Matched OR (exact 95% CI) | p value (exact) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N95 or Surgical maskb |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Direct contact with SARS patient |
0 |
0 |
1 |
1.4 |
2.00 (0.05 to ∞) |
0.6667 |
| Direct contact with patients in general c |
1 |
0.7 |
2 |
2.8 |
4.00 (0.21to 235.99) |
0.5185 |
| No patient contactd |
3 |
2.2 |
4 |
5.7 |
2.43 (0.41 to 16.77) |
0.4198 |
| N95b |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Direct contact with SARS patients |
6 |
4.2 |
7 |
9.7 |
2.86 (0.70 to 13.71) |
0.1683 |
| Direct contact with patients in generalc |
5 |
3.6 |
3 |
4.2 |
1.28 (0.16 to 10.47) |
1.0000 |
| No patient contactd |
14 |
10.2 |
12 |
17.1 |
1.83 (0.72 to 4.71) |
0.2315 |
| Gogglesb |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Direct contact with SARS patients |
12 |
8.4 |
23 |
31.9 |
6.41 (2.49 to 19.49) |
<0.0001 |
| Direct contact with patients in generale |
7 |
5.1 |
16 |
22.2 |
6.93 (2.19 to 28.85) |
0.0003 |
| No patient contactf |
19 |
13.9 |
21 |
30.0 |
3.50 (1.42 to 9.47) |
0.0046 |
| Gownb |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Direct contact with SARS patients |
6 |
4.2 |
15 |
20.8 |
8.85 (2.46 to 48.28) |
0.0002 |
| Direct contact with patients in generalc |
2 |
1.4 |
12 |
16.7 |
11.54 (2.56 to 106.36) |
0.0002 |
| No patient contactf |
16 |
11.7 |
19 |
27.1 |
3.42 (1.38 to 9.30) |
0.0061 |
| Glovesb |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Direct contact with SARS patients |
2 |
1.4 |
11 |
15.3 |
20.54 (2.96 to 887.72) |
0.0002 |
| Direct contact with patients in generalc |
5 |
3.6 |
7 |
9.7 |
3.53 (0.77 to 21.85) |
0.1211 |
| No patient contactf |
20 |
14.6 |
19 |
27.1 |
2.42 (1.05 to 5.81) |
0.0374 |
| Capb |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Direct contact with SARS patients |
8 |
5.6 |
17 |
23.6 |
7.30 (2.33 to 30.21) |
0.0001 |
| Direct contact with patients in generalc |
5 |
3.6 |
15 |
20.8 |
12.81 (2.92 to 116.75) |
0.0001 |
| No patient contact”f |
16 |
11.7 |
22 |
31.4 |
4.05 (1.68 to 10.76) |
0.0009 |
| No. of equipment inconsistently used with direct contact with SARS patientsg |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 0 |
129 |
90.2 |
45 |
62.5 |
1.00 |
|
| 1–2 |
7 |
4.9 |
13 |
18.1 |
5.35 (1.79 to 18.53) |
0.0015 |
|
>3 |
7 |
4.9 |
14 |
19.4 |
7.84 (2.30 to 34.83) |
0.0003 |
| No. of equipment inconsistently used with direct contact with patients in generale, g |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 0 |
127 |
92.0 |
52 |
72.2 |
1.00 |
|
| 1–2 |
6 |
4.3 |
8 |
11.1 |
4.85 (1.01 to 31.86) |
0.0479 |
|
>3 |
5 |
3.6 |
12 |
16.7 |
10.83 (2.29 to 102.60) |
0.0007 |
| No. of equipment inconsistently used when there was no patient contact g, h |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 0 |
113 |
82.5 |
46 |
65.7 |
1.00 |
|
| 1–2 |
6 |
4.4 |
4 |
5.7 |
1.56 (0.28 to 7.97) |
0.7721 |
| >3 | 18 | 13.1 | 20 | 28.6 | 3.40 (1.37 to 9.23) | 0.0061 |
aSARS, severe acute respiratory syndrome; CI, confidence interval; OR, odds ratio. bThose having no contact with patients were considered to be unexposed to the tabulated risk factor. cInformation on 4 controls missing. dInformation on 4 controls and 2 cases missing . eInformation on 5 controls missing. fInformation on 6 controls and 1 case missing. gInformation on 6 controls and 2 cases missing. hIncluding N95, goggles, gown, gloves and cap.