by info on April 20, 2010
Totobobo mask is the most comfortable and advanced respirator in the non-certified respirator market. In many respects the patented design is revolutionary. The original design cater to the needs of common users, who do not have access to professional fit-test facility and yet need the assurance of a well fitted respirator.
Preparing Totobobo masks for test
A different approach
To provide assurance of good fit, we made the reusable mask with transparent plastic, so that users can see through it and check the face-seal. We make the mask customizable, so that users can trim it to fit their face. The thin and flexible plastic is highly adaptive and easily follows the contour of the face, require very little force to hold on to the face. The strap is exceptionally flexible and comfortable to use. There is silver ion anti-virus additive in the mask to make reuse more safe. all these sounds great on paper, but how does it perform in real life?
Testing Totobobo mask
Testing the masks
To validate the protection of Totobobo, we sent the masks to the Prince of Wales Hospital in Hong Kong to test the effectiveness by professional fit-test facilities.
A randomized controlled cross over study was carreid out to compare the efficacy of Totobobo with fitted tested N95 masks (1860 or 1860s or 1862, 3M). The test was conducted in 22 healthy volunteers. The key findings are:
- The pass rate (filtration factor >100) of Totobobo mask was over 73%, while majority of (N95) masks fitting less than 40% of the test population
- The average filtration factor of fitted tested N95 masks is higher (193) then Totobobo mask (135).
- In terms of comfort, 65% subjects preferred Totobobo mask over their fitted tested N95 masks
Quote from the report:
“..Using the Totobobo mask in the panel of masks to be tested may reduce the number of masks that need to be tested before an adequate fit is found. This potential advantage, however, will need to be balanced against the time taken to trim the Totobobo mask to size. Furthermore, in situations where there is insufficient time to carry out fit testing use of the Totobobo mask may be a useful stopgap measure. In addition to this, the fact that the Totobobo mask is designed to be reusable may provide significant advantage. This would minimize the problems associated with the need to stockpile disposable masks and the difficulty of obtaining supplies in an epidemic. However, prior to concluding the mask is re-usable it is necessary to test the effect of sterilization processes on the mask. It is conceivable that such processes may make the mask less pliable and the fit less good. Moreover it is important to ensure that the process of changing the HEPA filters does not contaminate the user with infectious particles.
In terms of comfort 65% of subjects preferred the Totobobo mask over the N95 mask (1860, 1860s 3M). While the confidence interval straddles 50% this may be due to our small sample size. Comfort is an important issue when masks need to be worn for long periods of time. Greater comfort may translate into greater compliance with proper use of the mask and hence greater protection in clinical use. The experience of our ICU during SARS suggests that compliance is an important factor in determining the risk of occupational infection.”
The bottom line
If your have access to fit-test facility and have time to conduct fit test, the best option is fit-tested N95 mask. Otherwise, Totobobo mask provides reasonable good protection even if you don’t have access to fit-test facility or there is no time for fit test.
fit-test result from one of the subject
Source:
A randomized controlled pilot study to compare filtration factor of a novel non fit tested HEPA filtering facemask with a fit-tested N95 mask.
by Dr Sylvia S.W. Au, Dr Charles D. Gomersall, Patricia Leung and Dr Peggy T.Y. Li.
Dept of Anaesthesia & Intensive Care, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, Hong Kong.
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by info on August 11, 2009
We’ve got tips from our India connection 3 days ago about the Swine flu (H1N1) outbreak in Pune.
“The swine flu made its entry India in Pune. Its only a matter of time before it surfaces in rest of the country. I foresee a huge need for Totobobo masks in India.” Our connection mentioned in one of his email.
Spike started on 2009-08-10
This statement is also confirmed by visitor’s comments and the spike of demand from India over the last couple of days. We want to make it easy for India customers to obtain Totobobo mask for their protection, especially for children. We geared up our offer. The special offer at the end of this post is only available to customers ordering from India.
Note:
Totobobo mask now comes with 96% filter for better protection
AUG 11: H1N1 flu spread quickly in Inida
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by info on August 8, 2009
Haze in Singapore
The haze is back in Singapore, fuelled by raging fires in Sumatra. Thursday’s PSI was the highest recorded here in almost two years. Experts here said on Thursday the haze might linger over Singapore for a while, due to the prevailing south-west monsoon season conditions, which typically last till late October. If the situation worsen, put on a mask when you go out may be a good way to protect yourselves. Do take note if you do use a mask:
If a mask can not seal your face, it can not protect you from the haze.
Haze is an atmospheric phenomenon when airborn particles such as dust, smoke and other particles obscure the clarity of the sky. The haze particle are very fine and easily get breathe into your lung by following the air flow.
Buoyant haze particle follow the “passage of least resistance”. The working principle of a mask is to seal off the breathing zone such that the least resistant path through the mask is the filter. Air must go through the filters before it can reach the breathing zone. The particle is trapped on the filters and therefore the air is cleaned before entering your mouth or nose.
Regular surgical mask or even N95 mask won’t help if there is gaps between the mask and your face. A gap between the face and the mask is an alternative passage with less resistance than the filter. Air and the particle will leak through the gap rather than going through the filter. One of the key concern when using a regular mask is how can one decide if the mask is truly fitting and sealing the breathing zone?
Here in Totobobo mask we provide the possibility for you to check the fit through the transparent mask. You can adjust the position, the tension of the strap, or even cut the mask to make it better fit to your face. Although we can not guarantee it will fit everyone, yet the chances of fitting is much higher than a regular mask.
In addition, judging by the colour change you will be able to tell when the filter has done it’s job and should be replaced.
For demonstration, here is a pair of filter kindly provided by Kenneth Koh of Advanturenomad. He use the Totobobo mask during his cycling trip in Vietnam. The colour collected on the mask is the result of nearly 30 hours of cycling in Vietnam from Hanoi to Dalat.
Used filter after 28 hours of cycling in Vietnam
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a teenage girl wearing Totobobo mask
The current H1N1 flu triggered a sudden increase in sales of face masks and Totobobo, the first customizable face mask, is now hitting 25 countries across the world. This is a new milestone for the company, Dream Lab One, the producer of the Totobobo mask.
Travelers, cyclists, wood-turners and artists alike have found this reusable mask highly effective in blocking out polluted air and various irritants. Sales of this reusable mask has increased significantly and it has received rave reviews from users around the world.
“This mask may have saved my life. First, the mask is made out of a rubbery material, so it sticks naturally to your skin. After I found the perfect position on my face for my mask, I no longer have any problems with breathing…at all…period. My nose has cleared up, my eyes are no longer irritated, I don’t cough or sneeze at all anymore. It’s comfortable and it doesn’t fog my glasses! I hardly know I’m wearing it!” said Paula Ford, a satisfied Totobobo user and a pastel artist residing in Tennessee, United States.
Individuals who rely a lot on respiratory masks tend to live in environments that contain either polluted air or airborne disease pathogens. An effective mask helps to filter out polluted air and airborne virus. There are two conditions that determine whether a respiratory mask is effective. First, it needs to seal the wearer’s nose and mouth snugly. Second, the filter material must be able to filter out the smallest of particles.
“Money can buy high quality filters, but a good seal has been a hit-or-miss affair,” said Francis Chu, the designer of the revolutionary mask. His design provides a simple and intuitive solution call VSC (Visual-Seal-Check) for the user to check the face-seal.
Easy Visual-Seal-Check (VSC):
To ensure good respiratory seal, normal N95 mask users can only rely on their ability to feel the air-leak around their face. Such method is not reliable and sometimes it gives a fault sense of security. Francis believes his transparent mask allows users to check the seal intuitively and to ensure minimal seepage of polluted air.
To verify this, he sent the mask to a hospital and compared the Visual-Seal-Check (VSC) with the gold standard respirator fit-test, a high-end quantitative system called PortaCount from TSI Incorporated. The result showed strong correlation (90%) between the prediction of the Visual-Seal-Check (VSC) method and the result of the gold standard fit-test proving his intuitive method effective.
“The Visual-Seal-Check, or VSC, is much more reliable than the seal check found in other N95 masks. This study shows that face-seal can be determined simply by checking the seal through the transparent mask,” says Francis.
5 years old boy wearing Totobobo mask
Over half of the recent orders are coming from parents traveling with children. They appreciate the possibility to customize the mask to fit their young children. With the VSC they are more reassured that their children are getting the optimal protection.
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