LAUSR

Reading the article titled ‘ Use of portable air purifiers to reduce aerosols in hospital settings and cut down the clinical backlog ’ by Jacob Salmonsmith et al. [1] encouraged us to publish a commentary on the extrapolated conclusions regarding the use of portable air cleaners to reduce the concentration of aerosols in patient environments. We hope these perspectives may provide insight into areas that may require further research and improvement. In the aforementioned article, the authors summarised that the onset of the Covid-19 virus saw a substantial increase in the patient waiting lists for doctor consultations and procedures in healthcare settings in order to decrease disease transmission [1]. The researchers proposed that portable air cleaners (PACs) can be a cost-effective alternative to built-in mechanical ventilation systems to reduce potentially infectious aerosol concentrations. The experiment found that the use of PACs significantly reduced aerosol concentrations, which may decrease the risk of disease transmission and potentially lead to a reduction in clinical waiting lists [1]. In order to mimic the flow of aerosols out of someone ’ s mouth, saline was dispensed via a nebuliser into a room and monitored with a laser spectrometer (aerodynamic particle sizer (APS))