Face mask use during the COVID-19 pandemic was associated with breathing difficulties in adolescent patients with asthma

Abstract

Aim: Face masks have been used to prevent severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 transmission. We investigated the impact of face mask use on paediatric patients with asthma. Methods: Between February 2021 and January 2022, we surveyed adolescents aged 10–17 attending the paediatric outpatient clinic at the Lillebaelt Hospital, Kolding, Denmark with asthma, other breathing problems or no breathing problems. Results: We recruited 408 participants (53.4% girls) with a median age of 14 years: 312 in the asthma group, 37 in the other breathing problems group and 59 in the no breathing problems group. Most participants experienced mask-related breathing impairment. The relative risk (RR) of experiencing severe breathing problems, compared to no problems, was more than four times as high for adolescents with asthma (RR 4.6, 95% CI 1.3–16.8, p = 0.02) than adolescents with no breathing problems. More than a third (35.9%) of the asthma group experienced mild asthma and 3.9% had severe asthma. Girls experienced more mild (RR 1.9, 95% CI 1.2–3.1, p < 0.01) and severe (RR 6.6, 95% CI 3.1–13.8, p < 0.01) symptoms than boys. Age had no effect. Adequate asthma control minimised negative effects. Conclusion: Face masks caused significant breathing impairment in most adolescents, particularly in those with asthma.