Snorkel Mask Filter adapter PPE by greghyzak

Last crawled date: 4 years, 1 month ago

Our healthcare organization (Kelsey-Seybold Clinic) had been searching online for options regarding PPE shortages and came upon what some people are doing in Europe. The idea has been spilling over to the US in growing numbers.
We worked with a local fabricator to retrofit a regular full face snorkeling mask with a filter instead of the air snorkel. The masks have a silicone gasket surrounding the face with a great seal. All airflow is unidirectional, inhaling only through the snorkel and exhaling through separate side ports. We developed a 3D printed set of adapters that will accommodate various types of filters for protection. The filter adapter will accommodate any standard filter that fits into ventilator tubing (15/22mm) and also will accommodate the larger ones used for PFT. They both have a 99.99% viral filtration efficiency and can last for long periods of time. The masks also provide full face shield coverage, are easy to breathe through and do not fog. The mask was fit tested and it performed great. They even sprayed the saccharine spray directly into the snorkel filter and it was completely blocked without any smell or taste noted. All surfaces of the mask can be completely cleaned and sanitized. They can likely be gas sterilized as well. The printed component parts are gas sterilizable. The filters are disposable.