More than 30 people have died with COVID-19 in New South Wales and Victoria as new research shows doing CPR with face masks works.
NSW recorded 6594 COVID-19 cases and 18 virus-related deaths.
There are 1227 hospitalisations and 28 ICU admissions.
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Meanwhile in Victoria, the state recorded 16 virus-related deaths and 8445 new cases.
There are 509 people in hospital and 29 in ICU.
CPR with face masks deemed effective
As COVID-19 deaths remain stubbornly high in Australia, new international research has found it may be possible to perform mouth-to-mouth CPR while wearing a face mask to keep the virus at bay.
Mouth-to-mouth ventilation where a rescuer presses their mouth against the patient's mouth and blows air into their lungs is an integral part of life support.
"At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, CPR training in the Czech Republic and elsewhere was limited to either tuition in chest compressions alone (hands-only CPR) or schooling in bag-mask ventilation, due to concern about infection," the study said.
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Czech researchers tested masks, specifically a reusable FFP2 three-layer nanofibre self-sterilising respirator, while monitoring chest rising when performing mouth-to-mouth CPR.
Monitoring the chest rising was how researchers tested the effectiveness of transferring oxygen.
The study found more than 90 per cent of the breaths resulted in chest rising.
Dr Vaclav Vafek concluded performing mouth-to-mouth while wearing a face mask was effective more than 90 per cent of the time.
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"We cannot predict how serious the pandemic will be in the autumn and what the COVID-19 measures will be like then," Vafek said.
"Using this technique however, we will be able to continue to provide vital training in mouth-to-mouth resuscitation."
