Effect of wearing N95 masks for 10 hours on ambulatory blood pressure in healthy adults

The impact of wearing a face mask for an extended duration is unknown. This study aimed to determine if wearing a face mask for 10 h impacts blood pressure (BP) and arterial stiffness. Subjects received an ambulatory blood pressure cuff and were asked to wear it for 10 h while readings were taken every 15 min. During the face mask trial, subjects wore an N95 mask for 10 h. During the control, subjects did not wear a mask. Subjects were randomized to start their trial. An accelerometer was given to ensure no physical activity differences. Linear mixed models were used to determine group differences, and McNemar test was used to assess frequency differences when determining BP load. Twelve college-aged (20.5 ± 1.5 years) male ( n = 5) and female ( n = 7) individuals with normal BP participated in this study. There were no differences in time spent in any physical activity domain (all P > 0.05). There was no difference in brachial SBP ( P = 0.688), brachial DBP ( P = 0.063), central SBP ( P = 0.875), central DBP ( P = 0.246), heart rate ( P = 0.125), and augmentation pressure ( P = 0.158) between conditions. During mask condition, augmentation pressure was reduced by 5.2 ± 3.1% compared to control ( P < 0.001). There were no frequency differences in the number of BP readings above 140 mmHg for SBP ( P = 0.479) and >90 mmHg for DBP ( P = 0.212). The current study found that wearing an N95 mask for 10 h did not affect brachial or central BP but significantly decreased augmentation pressure.