Annals of emergency medicine
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Throughout the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, many emergency departments have been using passive protective enclosures ("intubation boxes") during intubation. The effectiveness of these enclosures remains uncertain. We sought to quantify their ability to contain aerosols using industry standard test protocols. ⋯ Passive enclosures for intubation failed to contain aerosols, but the addition of a vacuum and active air filtration reduced aerosol spread during simulated intubation and patient isolation.