Which statement accurately describes airborne precautions?

Which statement accurately describes airborne precautions?

• A. Airborne precautions include diseases such as TB, measles, varicella
• B. Droplet precautions require negative pressure rooms
• C. Contact precautions are the same as airborne
• D. Airborne precautions require only standard masks

Answer: (A)

Airborne precautions protect against infections that stay suspended in air as tiny particles and can be inhaled, potentially spreading beyond people who are in direct contact with the patient. Classic examples are tuberculosis, measles, and varicella. Because these agents can travel through ventilation systems and linger in the air, care settings use a private room with negative pressure to keep air from escaping, and anyone entering wears a properly fit-tested N95 respirator (or higher). The patient is often masked during transport if possible. This is different from droplet precautions, which deal with larger droplets that don’t travel far and don’t require negative-pressure rooms, and from contact precautions, which focus on preventing transmission via skin or contaminated surfaces. Also, airborne precautions require respirators rather than only standard masks.

Airborne precautions protect against infections that stay suspended in air as tiny particles and can be inhaled, potentially spreading beyond people who are in direct contact with the patient. Classic examples are tuberculosis, measles, and varicella. Because these agents can travel through ventilation systems and linger in the air, care settings use a private room with negative pressure to keep air from escaping, and anyone entering wears a properly fit-tested N95 respirator (or higher). The patient is often masked during transport if possible. This is different from droplet precautions, which deal with larger droplets that don’t travel far and don’t require negative-pressure rooms, and from contact precautions, which focus on preventing transmission via skin or contaminated surfaces. Also, airborne precautions require respirators rather than only standard masks.