DURATION OF FACEMASK USE AND ITS EFFECTS ON SOME CARDIOVASCULAR INDICES IN OVERWEIGHT FEMALE UNDERGRADUATES IN THE UNIVERSITY OF BENIN

ABSTRACT

In view of the pandemic spread of COVID-19, there is increasing evidence that face masks should be worn in public spaces as an integral part of hygiene measures to contain the virus. Masks play an important role in preventing infectious respiratory diseases. However, the influence of masks on human cardiovascular function in overweight individuals remains unclear. This study is aimed at determining the duration of face masks use and its effects on some cardiovascular parameters among overweight female undergraduates. Forty subjects were used for the study and when they came into the laboratory, they were made to sit while measurements of cardiovascular parameters were done in the following order; pre exposure to facemask, 1 hour after exposure to facemask, 2 hours after exposure to facemask, 3 hours after exposure to facemask, 4 hours after exposure to facemask and 24 hours post exposure to facemask. The face mask used in this study was the surgical facemask. The cardiovascular parameters measured include; Systolic and Diastolic Blood Pressure, Mean Arterial Pressure, Pulse Pressure and Pulse Rate. Statistical analysis was done using IBM (SPSS) version 28.0. Results were presented as mean ± SEM (standard error of mean). Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to compare the means of tests and control values while post-hoc test was done using scheffe test and a P value of < 0.05 was considered as statistically significant. Results revealed no statistically significant difference among the test group when compared with the control. In conclusion, the use of facemask has no harmful effect on cardiovascular parameters among overweight female undergraduates.