tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
Am J Infect Control
. 2021 May 6;S0196-6553(21)00296-0.
doi: 10.1016/j.ajic.2021.04.084. Online ahead of print.
Impact of personal protective equipment use on health care workers' physical health during the COVID-19 pandemic: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Petros Galanis[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Irene Vraka[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Despoina Fragkou[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Angeliki Bilali[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Daphne Kaitelidou[SUP] 3 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Abstract
Background: During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, health care workers (HCWs) have been obliged to wear personal protective equipment (PPE). We assessed the impact of PPE use on HCWs' physical health and we examined factors related to a greater risk of adverse events due to PPE use.
Methods: We applied the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis guidelines and the Cochrane criteria. We searched PubMed, Medline, Scopus, ProQuest, CINAHL, and medRxiv from January 1, 2020 to December 27, 2020.
Results: Our review included 14 studies with 11,746 HCWs. The estimated overall prevalence of adverse events among HCWs was 78% with a range from 42.8% to 95.1% among studies. Among others, the following factors were related to the risk of adverse events among HCWs due to PPE use: obesity, diabetes mellitus, smoking, pre-existing headache, longer duration of shifts wearing PPE, increased consecutive days with PPE, and increased exposure to confirmed or suspected COVID-19 patients.
Conclusions: The frequency of adverse events among HCWs due to PPE use is very high. Healthcare facilities should take the necessary precautions and change the working conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic to prevent adverse events associated with PPE use and minimize harm to HCWs.
Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; adverse events; health care workers; personal protective equipment.
. 2021 May 6;S0196-6553(21)00296-0.
doi: 10.1016/j.ajic.2021.04.084. Online ahead of print.
Impact of personal protective equipment use on health care workers' physical health during the COVID-19 pandemic: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Petros Galanis[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Irene Vraka[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Despoina Fragkou[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Angeliki Bilali[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Daphne Kaitelidou[SUP] 3 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 33965463
- DOI: 10.1016/j.ajic.2021.04.084
Abstract
Background: During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, health care workers (HCWs) have been obliged to wear personal protective equipment (PPE). We assessed the impact of PPE use on HCWs' physical health and we examined factors related to a greater risk of adverse events due to PPE use.
Methods: We applied the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis guidelines and the Cochrane criteria. We searched PubMed, Medline, Scopus, ProQuest, CINAHL, and medRxiv from January 1, 2020 to December 27, 2020.
Results: Our review included 14 studies with 11,746 HCWs. The estimated overall prevalence of adverse events among HCWs was 78% with a range from 42.8% to 95.1% among studies. Among others, the following factors were related to the risk of adverse events among HCWs due to PPE use: obesity, diabetes mellitus, smoking, pre-existing headache, longer duration of shifts wearing PPE, increased consecutive days with PPE, and increased exposure to confirmed or suspected COVID-19 patients.
Conclusions: The frequency of adverse events among HCWs due to PPE use is very high. Healthcare facilities should take the necessary precautions and change the working conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic to prevent adverse events associated with PPE use and minimize harm to HCWs.
Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; adverse events; health care workers; personal protective equipment.