Respiratory Effects of Wearing an N95 Filtering Facepiece Respirator: A Review of Current Literature

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During the COVID-19 pandemic, N95 filtering facepiece respirators (FFRs) have been commonly used to prevent the spread of infection. Concerns have been raised that N95 FFRs may have unintended detrimental consequences on respiratory health and function. This review examines current available data obtained from PubMed regarding the objective respiratory effects of wearing an N95. Fifteen publications studying N95 use in a total of 490 participants were reviewed; these included healthy subjects, healthy pregnant people, children, athletes, and individuals with pre-existing medical conditions. Studies examined N95 use under a variety of resting and exertional conditions. The reviewed data suggests that wearing an N95 may cause an increase in respiratory rate and end tidal CO2 both at rest and during exertion. It remains unclear how different chronic medical conditions such as respiratory disease impact the degree of physiologic changes. Further studies must be performed to better understand the respiratory effects of wearing an N95 in the general public as well as special populations.