Abstract
Air-purifying, half-mask respirators are appropriate for an increasing number of work atmospheres. Due to the great number of human facial variations, no one respirator face piece will fit all workers. This situation is complicated further by the fact that most masks are designed for males. A major problem confronting industry is the growing proportion of women requiring respirators who cannot obtain satisfactory fits.
This project was designed to comparatively analyze the protection men and women are afforded by three brands (nine sizes) of commercially available half-mask respirators. Anthropometric (in this case, facial) measurements and quantitative protection factors were obtained from 61 male and 60 female civilian workers.
The quantitative fit test results showed that 4.9 percent of men and 5 percent of women did not receive an adequate fit factor when tested with two randomly chosen brands of the three selected brands of half-mask respirators. No statistically different values were found by testing the mens' fit as a function of the brand of respirator. Fit for women, however, was found to be dependent on the brand type. The range of percent acceptable fit by brand was 72–89 percent for women and 83–85 percent for men. The adequate fit data were then analyzed to determine what sizes of masks were most appropriate for men and for women. Men were found to wear 60–70 percent mediums and 30–40 percent larges for two brands. The third brand showed 12 percent of the men wore small, 44 percent wore medium, and 44 percent wore large. Only the small (49–75%) and medium (25–51%) of all three brands were found to fit women.
