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Comparison of two progressive treadmill tests in patients with peripheral arterial disease

Department of Physical Education and Exercise Science, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI, USA, debriebe{at}uri.edu

Robert B Patterson

Vascular Exercise Program, Providence Surgical Care Group, Providence, RI, USA, Department of Surgery, Division of Vascular Surgery, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA

Christina M Braun

Vascular Exercise Program, Providence Surgical Care Group, Providence, RI, USA

In a vascular rehabilitation program, 28% of our frail elderly patients are unable to be tested with traditional progressive exercise protocols at program entry due to the high (2.0 miles/h or 3.2 km/h) initial treadmill speeds. The purpose of this investigation was to compare a new progressive treadmill protocol which has a reduced initial speed (1.0 mile/h or 1.6 km/h) to an established protocol performed at 2.0 miles/h (3.2 km/h) to determine the comparability and reproducibility of the new protocol. Eleven patients with arterial claudication performed three symptom-limited exercise tests in random order. Two tests used the new protocol while the remaining trial used the established protocol. Claudication pain was measured using a 5-point scale. Oxygen consumption, heart rate, minute ventilation, respiratory exchange ratio and blood pressure at peak exercise were similar among the three trials. There were strong intra-class correlations for peak oxygen consumption (r = 0.97), onset of claudication (r = 0.96) and maximum walking time (r = 0.98) between the two trials using the new protocol. There was also a significant correlation between the new protocol and the established protocol for peak oxygen consumption (r = 0.90) and maximum walking time (r = 0.89). The new progressive treadmill protocol represents a valid, reliable protocol for patients with arterial claudication. This protocol may be useful for testing patients with a low functional capacity so that clinically appropriate exercise prescriptions can be established and the efficacy of treatments can be determined.

Key Words: claudication • exercise testing • peripheral vascular disease

Vascular Medicine, Vol. 6, No. 4, 215-221 (2001)
DOI: 10.1177/1358836X0100600403


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