Effects of Prolonged Use of Facemask on Healthcare Workers in Tertiary Care Hospital During COVID-19 Pandemic
- PDF / 545,921 Bytes
- 7 Pages / 595.276 x 790.866 pts Page_size
- 109 Downloads / 205 Views
ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Effects of Prolonged Use of Facemask on Healthcare Workers in Tertiary Care Hospital During COVID-19 Pandemic P. K. Purushothaman1
•
E. Priyangha1 • Roopak Vaidhyswaran1
Received: 23 August 2020 / Accepted: 31 August 2020 Ó Association of Otolaryngologists of India 2020
Abstract The fundamental aim of this study is to determine the effects of prolonged usage of N95 respirators and surgical facemasks amid health care workers in our institution. Cross-sectional study. SRM medical college hospital, Kattankulathur. A self-constructed questionnaire containing 20 queries regarding the effects of prolonged use of face masks, after being analysed by the experts of our institution were handed over to 250 participants.. All participants wore either surgical masks or N95 respirators for a minimum of 4 h per day. People aged between 20 and 48 years were selected for this study. Study period was from 20/07/2020 to 26/07/2020. Completed questionnaires were sent for statistical analysis. A total of 250 healthcare workers participated in the study, out of which 179 were females. The acquired results were excessive sweating around the mouth accounting to 67.6%, difficulty in breathing on exertion 58.2%, acne 56.0% and itchy nose 52.0%. This study suggests that prolonged use of facemasks induces difficulty in breathing on exertion and excessive sweating around the mouth to the healthcare workers which results in poorer adherence and increased risk of susceptibility to infection. Keywords N95 respirators Surgical masks COVID-19 Healthcare workers
& P. K. Purushothaman [email protected] 1
Department of Otorhinolaryngology, SRM Medical College Hospital and Research Institute, Kattankulathur, Kanchipuram District, Tamilnadu, India
Introduction The nose is a complex organ that forms an important part of the face and has multiple functions. The primary function of the nose is to humidify,warm the inspired air and also aids at removing the harmful particles from entering into the lower respiratory tract. It is the frontline defender of the respiratory system. An average adult usually inspires about 10,000 L of air daily. Nasal mucosa is a highly vascular structure and has a large surface area of 150 cm square. Physiologically, the nose has 50% resistance in the entire airway, which when affected plays a significant role in total respiratory function. All of these components contribute to normal homeostasis of the body [1]. Slight fluctuations in the external environment can affect the function of cilia. Dry conditions hinder ciliary action thereby stopping ciliary movements at temperatures below 10 degree Celsius and temperatures above 45 degree Celsius [1]. Cilia can beat above pH-6.4 as well as function in a slightly alkaline medium of up to 8.5 for a prolonged period [1]. The normal inspiratory flow rate in an adult ranges between 5L-12 L/min and has pressure of 50 Pa between the nostrils and nasopharynx. During exercise the flow rate can increase as much as 150L/min [1]. The velocity of air increases as
Data Loading...
