An Open Letter on the New Way to End COVID-19
Open Letter on the New Way to End COVID-19
I am writing this letter to announce a new route to end the COVID-19 pandemic. This novel route is an active option using innovative technologies, which can not only deal with SARS-CoV-2, but also deal with any variant and new virus that may appear in the future.
We will also share some technologies and information to help some countries and regions quickly stop the spread of COVID-19 in a short period of time. The letter also discusses the "Cognitive Blind Spots" that exist in the current COVID-19 prevention, such as viral shedding from masks, double-mask enhancement effect, herd protection, etc. Understanding these "cognitive blind spots" can help people to avoid accidental infection and enhance protection.
At present, some people believe that "Vaccine & Nucleic Acid Test" is the only way to end the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the vaccine route is a passive option. When new or mutated viruses emerge, it is in a race against time to develop vaccines and nucleic acid detection reagents. Once the development of vaccines cannot keep up with the speed of virus mutation, human society will be extremely passive. Moreover, once there is a super virus that can evade all current vaccines and bring severe ADE effects, and humanity has no other options, the cost will be extremely high.
The new route is completely different from the vaccine route. It is "New-Generation Respirators & Real-Time Virus Detectors", which can quickly extinguish the pandemic and prevent the outbreak of the epidemic. It is an active option to end the ongoing global pandemic. The new route can avoid many possible risks caused by non-ideal vaccines: such as inability to prevent infection, long-term side effects, ADE effects, and so on.
There are many problems when using current respirators (including masks) to fight against COVID-19. One “cognitive blind spot” is ignored by almost everyone: The outer layer of most masks is spun bond non-woven fabric. This kind of mask sometimes becomes a carrier of virus, and viral shedding from the outer layer occurs when exhaling.
The New-Generation Respirators (including the new-generation masks and the new-generation PAPR) are novel respirators with high protection, low cost, low or zero breathing resistance, and high comfort. They can be used to replace surgical masks, KN95/N95 masks and conventional PAPR, and are suitable for all people. When the whole people wear new-generation respirators, the cost will be lower than the current spend in epidemic prevention.
Although surgical masks can block the spread of virus droplets, their Herd Protection Index is less than 9 (HPI, the decrease of the concentration of virus in the inhaled air when a population uses a respirator of certain type). Because surgical masks have poor blocking performance on the aerosol transmission of SARS-CoV-2, strict quarantine and lockdown have to be used to control the pandemic. The HPIs of the new generation respirators have reached 1,000 to 100,000, which can completely block the aerosol transmission of SARS-CoV-2. By adopting the new route against COVID-19, human society can basically return to normal without strict quarantine or lockdown. The new route can save many industries, especially aviation and tourism.
Respirators in the current market (four main categories):
1. Surgical mask: low cost, low protection, HPI is 6~9.
2. KN95/N95/FFP2 masks: medium cost, high respiratory resistance, medium protection, usually HPI is 100~1000.
3. Elastomeric respirator: medium cost, high protection, HPI is 200~500.
4. PAPR (powered air purifying respirator): high cost, high protection, usually HPI>1000.
Novel technologies and products used in the new route
(Seven series, including New-Generation Respirators & Real-time Virus Detectors):
1. SF mask braces: They can increase the HPI of surgical masks by about 100 times.
2. Single-layer single-frame masks (SLSF masks): The cost is similar to that of surgical masks, the respiratory resistance is lower than that of surgical masks, and the HPI is ~10,000.
3. Single-layer double-frame masks (SLDF masks): The cost of the filter is lower than that of surgical mask, low breathing resistance, high protection, HPI is ~10,000.
4. Face-shield PAPR: The purchase price is 90% lower than conventional PAPR, high protection, PPI is 30~1000.
5. Economy PAPR: The cost of filter material is 90% lower than conventional PAPR, high protection, PPI is 300~1000.
6. Filtering PAPR: It can filter the wearer's exhaled gas to prevent the wearer from infecting the surrounding people, usually HPI is 10,000~100,000.
7. Real-time virus detectors: They can be used to detect the concentration of viruses or particulates in the exhaled gas or the ambient air in real time.
Real-time virus detectors can promptly find the source of infection and issue early warnings to avoid infection. However, there are currently no similar technologies and products in the world. We have just developed the first-generation product: real-time exhaled gas particulate detector, which has paved the way and provided new ideas for the development of more accurate real-time virus detectors in the next step.
If the new route is popularized globally, the COVID-19 pandemic would be ended in a short period of time without quarantine and lockdown.
The COVID-19 pandemic can be ended in the following seven steps:
1. After perforating KN95/N95 masks to make porous mask braces (which can be used repeatedly after disinfection) and using these braces with surgical masks, people can rapidly prevent the spread of COVID-19.
2. When New-Generation Masks are popularized by the whole people, the global COVID-19 pandemic can be completely controlled. Those countries or regions that fully popularize the new-generation masks and adopt correct epidemic prevention measures will end the local epidemic.
3. If Filtering PAPR & New-Generation Masks are popularized and used together by all international travelers, the HPI may exceed 1,000,000, which means that even without nucleic acid test and vaccines, zero infection can be achieved on international flights. International travelers do not need to be quarantined, and are only required to wear the two kinds of respirators for a period of time (such as 2 to 4 weeks) when in contact with other people. The global spread of COVID-19 through international flights could be completely blocked.
4. When Face-Shield PAPR & New-Generation Masks are popularized in hospitals, zero infection would be achieved among health care workers, and the COVID-19 spread to the communities through the hospitals could be blocked.
5. When Filtering PAPR & New-Generation Masks are used by COVID-19 patients who are quarantined at home, the virus spread among family members would be blocked.
6. When other occupational groups with a high risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection (retail workers, transport workers, taxi drivers, etc.) all use the new generation of PAPR and masks, they would be well protected against COVID-19, and the virus spread to the communities through high-risk groups would be blocked.
7. When accurate real-time virus detectors are developed, people only need to wear respirators when the alarm goes out. The whole human society will return to normal, and the COVID-19 global pandemic will completely end. Even if there is a local epidemic in the future, the new epidemic could be speedily solved though the new route.
After the new route is popularized globally, human society can deal with any virus and any plague in the future.
Global cooperation is required in the new route. There are many works required collaboration to complete hurriedly, such as the mass production and popularization of new-generation respirators, the popularization of new epidemic prevention knowledge, the formulation of global new-generation respirator standards, the research on virus infection and virus spread, and the further research and development of real-time virus detection technology, and so on.
Only through global cooperation can we control the global COVID-19 pandemic quickly and prepare for the emergence of a super virus in advance.
This open letter will be sent to many people around the world, regardless of their skin color, ethnicity, political views, or religious beliefs. It is not an ordinary plague, it determines the future of mankind. It is necessary for everyone to let go of their prejudices, and work together to win the final victory. Only when more people are aware of the deficiencies and potential risks in the current epidemic prevention, and make a change, can the occurrence of greater disasters be avoided.
The content of this letter can be shared with others. Maybe some people are worried that the content of this letter will affect vaccination and give up sharing. Only when the vaccinated people are aware of the insufficiency of the vaccine, will they strengthen protection and avoid infection as much as possible. Ignoring risks often leads to worse outcomes.
We have gone through an extremely hard time to complete these novel inventions and new ideas. We hope that this new route can quickly help more people get rid of the difficult predicament.
Thank you very much for reading this letter.
Sincerely,
Doning Young (Yang Dongning)
Founder & CEO of Sumfound Technology
September 4, 2021