SynthesisAmerican journal of infection control2021
Impact of personal protective equipment use on health care workers' physical health during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in American journal of infection control, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 60 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
60 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 135 citations in OpenAlex.
- Skin Problems in the Facial Area due to the Use of Personal Protective Equipment in Healthcare Workers: A Systematic Review.Journal of clinical nursing · 2025Pooled it
- Pooled it
- The Work Environment during Coronavirus Epidemics and Pandemics: A Systematic Review of Studies Using Quantitative, Qualitative, and Mixed-Methods Designs.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Pooled it
- P2/N95 respirators & surgical masks to prevent SARS-CoV-2 infection: Effectiveness & adverse effects.Infection, disease & health · 2022Pooled it
- Personal protective equipment-associated headaches in health care workers during COVID-19: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in public health · 2022Pooled it
- Using Heart Rate to Measure Stress in Healthcare Workers Wearing PAPRs and N95 Masks: Insights from a Randomized Trial.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Trial
- Depression, anxiety and insomnia among isolated covid-19 patients: tele occupational therapy intervention vs. conventional one: a comparative study.BMC psychology · 2024Trial
- Influence of additional personal protective equipment on team performance in simulation-based emergency scenarios: a randomised controlled trial.British journal of anaesthesia · 2023Trial
- Frontline Healthcare Professionals' Perceptions of the Duty to Care During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Multi-Method Study in Mozambique.Developing world bioethics · 2026Article
- Physical, chemical and psychological effect of COVID-19 pandemic upon health care providers.BMC public health · 2026Article
- Infection prevention and control measures for Ebola disease and their outcomes from the perspective of health care workers: a mixed-methods study.BMC public health · 2026Article
- Exploration of Turkish ICU Nurses' care experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic: A qualitative study.Revista da Escola de Enfermagem da U S P · 2026Article
- "Without Filters" Nurse and Healthcare Worker Personal Protective Equipment Injuries and the COVID-19 Experience: An International Social Media Ethnographic Study.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Article
- Factors influencing personal protective equipment (PPE) use among blue-collar workers: an accessible survey.BMC public health · 2025Article
- Development and Validation of the Intimate Partner Violence Workplace Disruptions Assessment (IPV-WDA).International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Article
- Work-related injuries and compliance with personal protective equipment among migrant workers in Al-Qassim, Saudi Arabia.Industrial health · 2025Article
- Exploring Coronavirus Disease 2019 Risk Factors: A Text Network Analysis Approach.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Article
- Frequency of exposure incidents in hospital workers before and during the COVID-19 pandemic based on the hospital status and the use of personal protective equipment: a descriptive study with a historical comparison group.BMC infectious diseases · 2024Article
- SARS-CoV-2 infections in patients, health care workers and hospital outbreaks during the first 3 waves of the pandemic: a retrospective analysis in a secondary care hospital network in Germany.BMC infectious diseases · 2024Article
- Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundDuring 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.
methodsWe 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.
resultsOur 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.
conclusionsThe 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.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.