Impacts of surgical mask wearing on cardiopulmonary fitness using a six-minute walk test among older adults with hypertension

BACKGROUND: This study aims to investigate the impacts of surgical mask wearing on cardiopulmonary fitness using a six-minute walk test (6MWT) among older adults with hypertension. METHODS: The 45 older adults with hypertension volunteers were recruited and randomized into a no mask wearing condition and a surgical mask wearing condition. All volunteers were investigated through submaximal exercise testing using a 6MWT. Cardiopulmonary parameters were measured before and after performing a 6MWT. RESULTS: The results indicate post performance on the 6MWT for both the with and without surgical mask conditions significantly increased systolic blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory rate, and oxygen saturation (SpO(2)) when compared to before performing a 6MWT. However, surgical masks resulted in no differences to systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory rate, SpO(2), and 6MWT distance when compared to no masks. In contrast, the surgical mask condition significantly increased perceived exertion when compared with the no mask condition (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: This study indicates that surgical masks did not have an impact on cardiopulmonary fitness in older adults with hypertension.