Relationship between cognitive function and 6-minute walking test in older outpatients with chronic heart failure.
OBJECTIVE
Cognitive decline and heart failure frequently coexist in the elderly. Although an epidemiologic association may partially explain this finding, cerebral hypoperfusion and cardioembolism have been advocated as pathophysiological links. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the relationship between mild cognitive decline and exercise capacity in older outpatients with chronic heart failure (CHF).


METHODS
We studied 80 elderly outpatients with stable CHF, mainly of ischemic etiology, assessing total exercise capacity with the 6-minute walking test (6MWT) and global cognitive function with the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE). CHF severity, emotional status, comorbidity, disability and disease-specific quality of life were also determined at the time of enrollment.


RESULTS
A positive association was observed between the distance walked at 6MWT and MMSE score, even after adjusting for demographic parameters, indexes of CHF severity, comorbidities, level of disability, and quality of life.


CONCLUSIONS
An easy and reliable measure of cardiovascular global performance is independently associated with cognitive function in older outpatients affected by CHF. In the context of global aging, this observation emphasizes the importance of a comprehensive assessment, encompassing a standard, brief and reliable cognitive evaluation, in elderly CHF outpatients.
Department of Critical Care Medicine and Surgery, University of Florence, Via delle Oblate 4, 50134 Florence, Italy. pesine@libero.it
Samuele
S
Baldasseroni
Enrico
E
Mossello
Benedetta
B
Romboli
Francesco
F
Orso
Claudia
C
Colombi
Stefano
S
Fumagalli
Andrea
A
Ungar
Francesca
F
Tarantini
Giulio
G
Masotti
Niccolò
N
Marchionni
D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003071:Cognition; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000517:prevention & control; D005080:Exercise Test; D017079:Exercise Tolerance; D005260:Female; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008609:Mental Status Schedule; D016138:Walking / Q000502:physiology*