Effects of Wearing Mask on Breathing in Population of North Gujarat during COVID 19: A Survey

Background: COVID-19 is the most dreadful pandemic the world is facing now-a-days. The spread of the virus is mandatory and measures like wearing of masks, social distancing, washing and sanitizing hands, etc. are taken. But there occur some changes in the lifestyle and also some physiological changes take place. Aim: This survey is aimed to check the effects on the breathing of people due to prolonged use of mask due to COVID-19. Objective: To find out whether people are facing any breathing difficulty due to prolong use of mask. Materials and Methodology: A survey was performed among population of North Gujarat to know the changes in the breathing pattern they felt due to prolonged wearing of mask. A self ? questionnaire was used for the same. First 100 participants and their answers were considered. Result: Due to prolonged use of mask people face problems in breathing like suffocation, easy fatigability, etc. Conclusion: The study concludes that most of the population of North Gujarat that wears their mask for more than 4 hours/day are facing some problems due to prolonged wearing of mask. People face problems like inability to do heavy work while wearing mask, suffocation, change in breathing rate, etc.