Kinyili, MusyokaMunyakazi, Justin B.Mukhtar, Abdulaziz Y. A.2022-07-042022-07-042022Kinyili, M. et al. (2022). To use face masks or not after Covid-19 vaccination? An impact analysis using mathematical modeling. Frontiers in Applied Mathematics and Statistics, 8, 872284. 10.3389/fams.2022.8722842297-468710.3389/fams.2022.872284http://hdl.handle.net/10566/7548The question of whether to drop or to continue wearing face masks especially after being vaccinated among the public is controversial. This is sourced from the efficacy levels of COVID-19 vaccines developed, approved, and in use. We develop a deterministic mathematical model that factors in a combination of the COVID-19 vaccination program and the wearing of face masks as intervention strategies to curb the spread of the COVID-19 epidemic. We use the model specifically to assess the potential impact of wearing face masks, especially by the vaccinated individuals in combating further contraction of COVID-19 infections. Validation of the model is achieved by performing its goodness of fit to the Republic of South Africa’s reported COVID-19 positive cases data using the Maximum Likelihood Estimation algorithm implemented in the fitR package. We first consider a scenario where the uptake of the vaccines and wearing of the face masks, especially by the vaccinated individuals is extremely low.enCovid-19Face maskPublic healthCovid-19 vaccinationMathematical modelingSouth AfricaArticle