신경계 물리치료 직무수행 시 마스크 착용 유무가 물리치료사의 심혈관계 반응, 폐 기능 및 직무 피로도에 미치는 영향

The Impact of Wearing a Face Mask on the Cardiovascular Responses, Lung Function, and Fatigue of Physical Therapists During Neuro-Developmental Treatment

Background: The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of wearing a KF94 mask on the cardiovascular responses, lung function, and fatigue of physical therapists during Neuro-Developmental Treatment(NDT). Methods: This study included 16 physical therapists in their 20s and 30s whose main when performed NDT. The physical therapist, who was the subjects of the study, performed 30 minutes of NDT on healthy people without and with wearing KF94 mask. Measurements were taken before and after NDT. The data were analyzed using a one-way repeated measures ANOVA to determine the differences of each variable when resting, not wearing a mask and wearing a mask during NDT. To investigate differences in job performance before and after wearing masks, an independent samples t-test was conducted. The statistical significance level was set at 0.05. Results: The physical therapists exhibited significantly increased cardiovascular responses, dyspnea, and occupational fatigue when performing NDT wearing a mask compared to when doing so not wearing a mask. peak expiratory flow rate was significantly decreased. However, The forced vital capacity significantly decreased during performance compared to the resting state. Conclusion: Wearing a mask during treatment results in a physical therapist experiencing increased cardiovascular responses, dyspnea, and occupational fatigue, A decrease in peak expiratory flow was observed, thus affecting the quality of treatment. Therefore, to provide high-quality treatment services for patients, there is a need to create a healthy work environment for physical therapists with wearing a masks.