title: [Measurement of cardiorespiratory fitness in the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Adults (DEGS1)].
abstract: A state of good fitness is related to a better health state and a lower mortality risk. In the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Adults (DEGS1), aerobic fitness was measured among adults between 18 and 64 years old using a submaximal cycle ergometry test. The total sample comprised 5,263 persons, amongst those 3,111 were categorized as being test-qualified according to the Physical Activity Readiness-Questionnaire. There were 3,030 persons who absolved a submaximal exercise test according to the exercise protocol of the WHO (25/25/2). The test-participation rate was 57.2 % in relation to the total sample and 97.4 % among test-qualified persons. Apart from the continuous heart-rate monitoring, capillary blood was taken prior to starting the test and at the end of each workload stage for performing blood lactate analyses. The test ended when 85 % of the age-predicted maximal heart rate was exceeded. In all 11.9 % of the tests were terminated earlier, the mean exercise duration was 10.8 min, and the anticipated submaximal exertion in the highest workload stage was on average achieved with a mean of 15 on the 20-point RPE scale. The nationwide data can now be used for the national health monitoring system, epidemiological research and for the calculation of reference values. An English full-text version of this article is available at SpringerLink as supplemental.
authors.affiliation: Abteilung für Epidemiologie und Gesundheitsmonitoring, Robert Koch-Institut, General-Pape-Str. 62-66, 12101 Berlin, Deutschland. FingerJ@rki.de
authors.forename: J D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Finger
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gößwald
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Härtel
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Müters
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Krug
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hölling
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kuhnert
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bös
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D005080:Exercise Test / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D017079:Exercise Tolerance; D005260:Female; D005858:Germany / Q000453:epidemiology; D006304:Health Status; D006306:Health Surveys / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010809:Physical Fitness; D017678:Sex Distribution; D012923:Social Class; D055815:Young Adult