title: Using a 6-minute walk test to predict outcomes in patients with left ventricular dysfunction.
abstract: Maximal oxygen consumption (VO2MAX) is an independent variable that predicts outcomes in patients suffering from left ventricular dysfunction (LVD). Determining VO2MAX in a rehabilitation setting is not only costly and time-consuming but it would also be beyond many patients' physical abilities. This study's goal was to show that a simpler and less costly 6-minute walk test can predict mortality in patients with LVD. Sixty-six Phase 1 cardiac rehabilitation patients with LVD performed the 6-minute walk test upon admission and at discharge from a rehabilitation hospital. Upon discharge, the group that was able to walk significantly longer distances upon discharge had a higher survival rate 3 months after discharge. The 6-minute walk test can predict longer survival in patients with LVD and can provide valuable information for determining treatment plans, future prognosis, and home disposition of deconditioned LVD patients in a rehabilitation setting.
authors.affiliation: Cardiology Department, Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA.
authors.forename: N P
authors.initials: NP
authors.lastname: Milligan
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Havey
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Dossa
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D005080:Exercise Test / Q000592:standards*; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D010101:Oxygen Consumption; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011379:Prognosis; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D016019:Survival Analysis; D018487:Ventricular Dysfunction, Left / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000401:mortality; D016138:Walking