The effect of the protective face mask on cardiorespiratory response during aerobic exercise

Abstract

The protective face mask (PFM) has been widely used for safety purposes and, after the advent of the COVID‐19 pandemic, its use is growing steadily, not only among healthcare personnel but also the general population. While the PFM is important to preserve the wearer from contaminating agents present in the airflow, they are well known to increase the subjective perception of breathing difficulty. Although some studies have demonstrated that PFM use worsens exercise tolerance, several studies state that there is no such limitation with the use of PFM. Moreover, no serious adverse effects during physical exercise have been found in the literature. Physical exercise represents a significant challenge to the human body through a series of integrated changes in function that involve most of its physiologic systems. In this respect, cardiovascular and respiratory systems provide the capacity to sustain physical tasks over extended periods. Within this scenario, both convective oxygen (O2) transport (product of arterial O2 content × blood flow) to the working locomotor muscles and O2 diffusive transport from muscle capillaries to mitochondria are of paramount importance to endurance performance. Interestingly, the effects of PFM on cardiorespiratory response during aerobic exercise depends on the type of mask and exercise (i.e., walking, running, or cycling), the ventilatory demands, arterial oxygen levels, maximal oxygen consumption and endurance performance. The purpose of this review is to elucidate the effect of protective face mask‐wearing on (1) cardiorespiratory responses during aerobic exercise and (2) endurance performance.

Effect of facemask use on cognitive function during a maximal running aerobic fitness test

“…In contrast, a systematic review of the literature and meta-analysis showed that wearing a facemask while exercising had no impact on exercise performance ( Shaw et al, 2021b ). This contradiction may be due to the type of mask worn and the exercise practiced ( do Prado et al, 2022 ; Fikenzer et al, 2020 ). In addition, considering that cardiovascular fitness is strongly correlated to cognition ( Hötting and Röder, 2013 ) as well as exercise and physical activity in general ( Mandolesi et al, 2018 ), it is important to evaluate the impact of exercising while wearing a facemask on cognitive functioning.…”

The Difficulties of Conducting Research and Transdisciplinary Studies in Sports Medicine in Brazil

“…• The effect of the protective face mask on cardiorespiratory response during aerobic exercise , Prado DML et al, 2021 [10] • Six-minute walk test as a resource for prescribing high-intensity physical training for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease , Rodrigues ALL., 2016 [27] • Building a new concept in metabolic studies in exercise science , Bassani A, Cameron LC, 2014 [9] • Immediate effects of whole-body vibration exercise on hemodynamic, hormonal parameters and oxidative biomarkers in sarcopenic elderly: a randomized controlled clinical trial , Paula FA de, 2021 [26] Transdisciplinary teams 3 • Effect of sports training on residents of areas of social vulnerability: a study using heart rate variability (HRV) and biofeedback , Silva Junior RM da, 2020 [16] 1. Publication of the largest number of national studies.…”

“…In Brazil, the Paulista Society of Sports Medicine (SPAMDE) was founded in 1942, and the Brazilian Federation of Exercise and Sports Medicine, which later became the Society of Exercise and Sports Medicine, was founded in 1962 (SMBEE). It should be noted that, despite technological advances in the field, this medical specialty is still relatively new; it first appeared in Sao Paulo at the end of the 1930s to verify the absence of diseases in athletes, sparking interest in the effect of physical activity and sport on health and thus strengthening the sport and health binomial [10] .…”

Correlation Between Aerobic Training and Physical Endurance in Basketball Players

“…After years of experimental observation in academia, it has been found that better endurance is the fundamental guarantee for winning the game. 1 Low stamina is the main reason for the failure of the vast majority of players. Correctly looking at and solving the endurance in basketball is related to whether the level of modern basketball can be further improved.…”