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A practical and transferable new protocol for treadmill testing of children and adults**

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 December 2008

Karl-Otto Dubowy ,
Winfried Baden ,
Stefan Bernitzki  and
Brigitte Peters
Karl-Otto Dubowy*
Affiliation:
Department of Paediatric Cardiology, Heartcenter of North Rhine-Westphalia, University of Bochum, Bad Oeynhausen, Germany
Winfried Baden
Affiliation:
Department of Paediatrics II, Children′s Hospital, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
Stefan Bernitzki
Affiliation:
Department of Paediatric Cardiology, Heartcenter of North Rhine-Westphalia, University of Bochum, Bad Oeynhausen, Germany
Brigitte Peters
Affiliation:
Institute for Biometry and Medical Informatics, University of Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Germany
*
Correspondence to: Dr med. Karl-Otto Dubowy, Heartcenter of North Rhine-Westphalia, Dept. of Paediatric Cardiology, Ruhr University of Bochum, Georgstr.11, 32545 Bad Oeynhausen, Germany. Tel: +49 5731 973605; Fax: +49 5731 972131; E-mail: kdubowy@hdz-nrw.de
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Abstract

Background

It is just as vital to have an exact overview of the physical fitness of young and growing people as it is for adults. The currently used exercise protocols have limitations in healthy small children, and in senior citizens. In particular with chronically ill patients, regardless of their age, there is a need for an exercise protocol that permits observations over the long term. With this need in mind, we have designed a new transferable standardised exercise protocol, constructing reference values based on improved assessments on a treadmill that permitted stepwise increases of speed and gradient every 90 seconds – the so called treadmill protocol from the German Society of Paediatric Cardiology.

Objectives

We investigated the exercise performance in a healthy Caucasian population ranging in age from 4 to 75 years.

Methods

We measured, using a prospective study design, the distance run, the endurance, and the consumption of oxygen in 548 females and 647 males undergoing an enhanced spiroergometric treadmill protocol in two centres.

Results and conclusions

Until puberty, boys and girls have the same indicators of exercise performance. Subsequent to puberty, uptake of oxygen and distance run differ, with males showing higher uptake of oxygen. There is still an age-dependent dynamic of peak uptake of oxygen related to body surface area. Using these new reference values, covering the whole range of age, it proves possible to compare performance during growth and aging of the individual. In this fashion, we have calculated centiles for all recorded variables. External calibration, validation and quality control ensures transferability of our data to other spiroergometry units.

Keywords

Paediatricsexercise testingergospirometrypercentilesexercise performance
Type
Original Article
Information
Cardiology in the Young , Volume 18 , Issue 6 , December 2008 , pp. 615 - 623
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2008

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Footnotes

*

This study has been partly supported by the “Kompetenznetz Angeborene Herzfehler” (Competence Network for Congenital Heart Defects) funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), FKZ 01G10210.

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