Effects of mask use on cardiopulmonary functions and coronaphobia in the COVID-19 pandemic: an observational study among university students.

Mask use during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has been widely recommended and mandated worldwide. However, there is a lack of comprehensive research on the potential adverse health effects of mask usage. This study aimed to investigate and evaluate the negative effects of surgical mask use on scientifically proven cardiopulmonary functions in undergraduate and associate degree students, as well as its impact on coronaphobia. A total of 145 volunteer university students (49 males, 96 females, with a mean age of 20 years) were enrolled in the study, which consisted of two 120-minute sessions. Blood oxygen saturation, heart rate, and blood pressure were assessed before and immediately after each session. The Coronavirus-19 Phobia Scale was utilized to measure levels of COVID-19 phobia. While a time-dependent decrease in oxygen saturation level, blood pressure, and heart rate was measured when vital signs were evaluated at 1 and 120 minutes, none of the values fell outside the reference range. The study also investigated the effects of mask use on various symptoms including headaches, visual impairment, facial discomfort, earaches, shortness of breath, and anxiety. Significantly increased occurrences of all these symptoms were observed at the 60th and 120th minute compared with the baseline. The participants enrolled in the study demonstrated a moderate level of COVID-19 phobia based on the mean total score. Furthermore, high scores were recorded in the psychological and social sub-dimensions, while lower scores were recorded in the economic and psychosomatic sub-dimensions. In the post-COVID-19 normalization phase, the use of a surgical mask during a 120-minute course was found to have no significant impact on cardiopulmonary functions, but moderately affected coronaphobia scores.

Measurement of coronaphobia in older adults: Validation of the Spanish version of the Coronavirus Anxiety Scale / Medición de la coronafobia en adultos mayores: validación de la versión en español de la Coronavirus Anxiety Scale

Background and objective: The Coronavirus Anxiety Scale (CAS) is an instrument that measures the severity of anxiety due to COVID-19 or coronaphobia. In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, older adults are the most vulnerable age group; therefore, the aim of the study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the CAS in this group.Materials and method: 274 Peruvian older adults participated (Mage=67.86; SD=6.34, 64.6% women). In addition to the CAS, the 2-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-2), and 2-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale (GAD-2) were applied. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) was used to assess the factor structure of the CAS and Item Response Theory was used to analyze item characteristics. A sequence of hierarchical variance models was used to evaluate the measurement invariance of the CAS according to age. To assess reliability, Cronbach's alpha coefficient (α) and the omega coefficient (ω) were used. The correlations between the CAS score and the scores of the PHQ-2 and GAD-2 scales were calculated with Pearson's correlation coefficient (r).Results: The results of the CFA indicated that the unidimensional model of the CAS fitted the data adequately and showed very good reliability (α and ω≥.83). Likewise, all items provided high information and adequate discrimination, which allowed for better detection of average and high levels of coronaphobia in the older adult population. However, the CAS did not show evidence of being strictly invariant between older adults aged 60–65 years and 66–86 years. The CAS showed significant correlations with anxiety (r=.72; [95%CI: .66, .87] p<.01) and depression (r=.53; [95%CI: .43, .76] p<.01). (AU)

Antecedentes y objetivo: La Coronavirus Anxiety Scale (CAS) es un instrumento que mide la severidad de la ansiedad por la COVID-19 o coronafobia. En el contexto de la pandemia de la COVID-19, los adultos mayores son el grupo de edad más vulnerable; por lo tanto, el objetivo del estudio fue evaluar las propiedades psicométricas del CAS en este grupo.Materiales y método: Participaron 274 adultos mayores peruanos (Medad=67.86; DE=6.34, 64.6% mujeres). Además del CAS, se aplicaron el 2-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-2) y el 2-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale (GAD-2). Se utilizó un Análisis Factorial Confirmatorio (AFC), para evaluar la estructura factorial del CAS y la Teoría de Respuesta al Ítem, para analizar las características de los ítems. Se utilizó una secuencia de modelos de varianza jerárquicos para evaluar la invarianza de medición del CAS según edad. Para evaluar la confiabilidad, se utilizó el coeficiente alfa de Cronbach (α) y el coeficiente omega (ω). Las correlaciones entre el puntaje del CAS, los puntajes de las escalas PHQ-2 y GAD-2, se calcularon con el coeficiente de correlación de Pearson (r).Resultados: Los resultados del AFC indicaron que el modelo unidimensional del CAS ajustó adecuadamente a los datos y mostró una muy buena confiabilidad (α y ω ≥ .83). Asimismo, todos los ítems brindaron una alta información y adecuada discriminación; lo que permitió detectar mejor los niveles promedio y alto de coronafobia en la población de adulta mayor. Sin embargo, el CAS no mostró ser estrictamente invariante entre adultos mayores de 60 a 65 años y 66 a 86 años. El CAS mostró correlaciones significativas con la ansiedad (r=.72; [IC95%: .66, .87] p<.01) y depresión (r=.53; [IC95%: .43, .76] p<.01).

Measurement of coronaphobia in older adults: Validation of the Spanish version of the Coronavirus Anxiety Scale.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The Coronavirus Anxiety Scale (CAS) is an instrument that measures the severity of anxiety due to COVID-19 or coronaphobia. In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, older adults are the most vulnerable age group; therefore, the aim of the study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the CAS in this group. MATERIALS AND METHOD: 274 Peruvian older adults participated (Mage=67.86; SD=6.34, 64.6% women). In addition to the CAS, the 2-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-2), and 2-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale (GAD-2) were applied. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) was used to assess the factor structure of the CAS and Item Response Theory was used to analyze item characteristics. A sequence of hierarchical variance models was used to evaluate the measurement invariance of the CAS according to age. To assess reliability, Cronbach's alpha coefficient (α) and the omega coefficient (ω) were used. The correlations between the CAS score and the scores of the PHQ-2 and GAD-2 scales were calculated with Pearson's correlation coefficient (r). RESULTS: The results of the CFA indicated that the unidimensional model of the CAS fitted the data adequately and showed very good reliability (α and ω≥.83). Likewise, all items provided high information and adequate discrimination, which allowed for better detection of average and high levels of coronaphobia in the older adult population. However, the CAS did not show evidence of being strictly invariant between older adults aged 60-65 years and 66-86 years. The CAS showed significant correlations with anxiety (r=.72; [95%CI: .66, .87] p<.01) and depression (r=.53; [95%CI: .43, .76] p<.01). CONCLUSION: The CAS in Spanish shows evidence of validity based on internal structure, convergent and divergent validity, as well as an adequate reliability estimate to assess coronaphobia in older adults. The CAS can be used to detect average and high levels of coronaphobia in the older adult population.