Impact of Concurrent Use of N95 and Surgical Masks on Peripheral Oxygen Saturation and Heart Rate Frequency—A Prospective Study during the COVID-19 Outbreak-Reference-Cited by-同舟云学术

Impact of Concurrent Use of N95 and Surgical Masks on Peripheral Oxygen Saturation and Heart Rate Frequency—A Prospective Study during the COVID-19 Outbreak

Published:2024-02-05 Issue:2 Volume:60 Page:276
ISSN:1648-9144
Container-title:Medicina
language:en
Short-container-title:Medicina

Author:

Alessandri-Bonetti Anna¹^ORCID,Sangalli Linda²^ORCID,Gallenzi Patrizia¹

Affiliation:

1. Department of Dental Clinic and Maxillofacial Surgery, A. Gemelli University Policlinic IRCCS, Catholic University of Sacred Heart, Largo Francesco Vito 1, 00168 Rome, Italy

2. College of Dental Medicine—Illinois, Midwestern University, 555 31st Street, Downers Grove, IL 60515, USA

Abstract

Background and Objectives: The COVID-19 outbreak has necessitated the prolonged use of N95 facemasks in addition to traditional surgical facemasks by healthcare workers. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of wearing N95 facemasks in addition to surgical facemasks on peripheral oxygen saturation (SpO2) and heart rate (HR) among dental professionals during routine care. Materials and Methods: This prospective study compared SpO2 and HR between dental providers wearing N95 + surgical facemasks vs. wearing a surgical facemask only. SpO2 and HR were recorded using a portable pulse oximeter before wearing the facemask (T0); at 30 min (T1); at 1 h (T2); and at the end of clinical activity (T3). Inter-group and intra-group differences were assessed with independent t tests and repeated measures ANOVA, respectively. Results: A total of 88 participants (57 wearing N95 + surgical facemasks, and 31 wearing a surgical facemask only) completed the study. The two groups did not statistically differ in SpO2 at different timepoints nor showed any intra-group differences. The participants wearing N95 + surgical facemasks exhibited a statistically higher HR at T0 (p = 0.007), T2 (p = 0.010), and T3 (p = 0.014) compared to those wearing a surgical facemask only. A statistically significant decrease was observed in HR between T0 and T3 in those wearing N95 + surgical facemasks (p = 0.012). No intra-group differences were seen in HR over time in those wearing a surgical facemask only. Conclusions: The continuous use of an N95 in addition to a surgical facemask did not show any significant effects in SpO2 during routine care; however, the concurrent use of an N95 and a surgical facemask seemed to be accompanied by a decrease in HR, although the values remained within the normal range.

Publisher

MDPI AG

Subject

General Medicine

Link

https://www.mdpi.com/1648-9144/60/2/276/pdf

Reference28 articles.

1. World Health Organization (2022, July 08). Coronavirus Disease (COVID-2019) Pandemic. Available online: https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019.

2. Sharma, A., Farouk, I.A., and Lal, S.K. (2020). COVID-19: A Review on the Novel Coronavirus Disease Evolution, Transmission, Detection, Control and Prevention. Viruses, 13.

3. High-risk aerosol-generating procedures in COVID-19: Respiratory protective equipment considerations;Howard;Otolaryngol. Head Neck Surg.,2020

4. Jerome, A., and National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (U.S.). Division of Viral Diseases. CDC (2021, September 21). Recommendation Regarding the Use of Cloth Face Coverings, Especially in Areas of Significant Community-Based Transmission, Available online: https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/86440.

5. (2022, July 08). European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control: Using Face Masks in the Community—Reducing COVID-19 Transmission from Potentially Asymptomatic or Pre-Symptomatic People through the Use of Face Masks. Available online: https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/sites/default/files/documents/COVID-19-use-face-masks-community.pdf.