Protection from becoming infected by airborne viruses (e.g., exhaled by an infected person) can be dramatically improved by a combination of good hygiene—especially hand washing—and wearing a protective mask. A difficulty is that available masks are not always up to the task.

VIROGARD protective masks offer a practical and effective form of protection by not only preventing the intake of droplets and particles, but actively killing bacteria and viruses that come in contact with the mask itself. Designed for comfortable wear over long periods and also being washable/reusable it is thus optimized as a truly practical and effective aid to protecting against airborne viruses.

• Full-face respirators with appropriate filters give good protection but are expensive, uncomfortable and impractical for most day-to-day uses. Use is generally confined to military and law enforcement operations.
  
  
• Surgical masks provide some protection against airborne droplets, but are effective only for a limited time and not at all once the mask is saturated by moisture from the wearer's breath. Once contaminated they are also themselves a source for further containation.
  
  
• Particulate respirators such as the N95 or C2 type are better than surgical masks but can become very uncomfortable after even a relatively sort period, and, like surgical masks, once contaminated are themselves a source for further contamination. Bacteria and viruses remain quite viable for long periods on such masks. Further, up to 5% of particles can pass through an N95 mask and unfortunately it is likely to be the smaller particles such as viruses that do so.